San Fernando Valley man attacked while confronting suspects breaking into neighbor's home

Neighbor hit with bear mace during break-in

A Toluca Lake home invasion was caught on camera, and a neighbor who confronted the suspects says he was attacked with bear spray.

LOS ANGELES - A brazen home invasion was caught on camera, this time near Toluca Lake.

A neighbor who says he was attacked by one of the suspects after confronting them is speaking out.

Some residents in the Valley are frustrated because there has been a series of break-ins and burglaries over the last few weeks.

One Toluca Lake resident says he wanted to send a message to ensure no one even thinks about trying to break in ever again.

"I got a text at 12:04, and it just simply said, ‘We’re being robbed right now,’" said neighbor Steve Calabro.

He says on Friday he jumped into action once his neighbors across the street told him they were observing a burglary in progress through their security cameras.

In the security video, you can see two suspects inside the house. At one point, they slowly make their way up the stairs.

"They panicked once they knew I was there because they had radios," said Calabro. "And the driver radioed them that somebody was outside, and that’s when they panicked and ran out."

Calabro said he made sure to have his camera out to snap photos of them and their suspected getaway car. But he says right before the suspects drove off, one of the suspects approached him.

"The second guy pulled out a giant canister of bear spray and came right up to me and ran towards me, and I started going towards him, and then he pulled the bear spray and sprayed me in the face, but I kept on taking pictures," said Calabro.

This is just the latest in a string of brazen break-ins and, in some cases, burglaries in the Valley in recent weeks.

Last week, a West Hills family, whose truck was stolen by four suspects, was caught on home surveillance video.

A few days before that, a Woodland Hills home was broken into with kids inside.

"Talk to your neighbors, be aware of what’s going on," said Calabro.

Calabro says he hopes this serves as a reminder that residents need to help protect one another.

"If we don’t speak to each other, my neighbor wouldn’t have had my number, she couldn’t have texted me, and we could not have stopped this thing, so we’re taking back our neighborhoods."

Neighbors say this is not the first time homes in this area have been targeted.

FOX 11 reached out to the LAPD about this reported home invasion and any update on the suspects. We are waiting to hear back.