HOUSTON – For the second time this month, a crook posing as a letter carrier has tricked a victim into opening their front door. Police say it’s a disturbing new trend in home invasions.

Just before 11 a.m. Thursday, residents at a southeast Houston home were woken up by a knock at the door. One of them looked out and saw what appeared to be a uniformed postal carrier with a mailbag.

“He thought he had package and opened the door to sign for it,” said HPD Sgt. Juan Reynaldo. “By the time he opened the door, three other males come rushing in.”

The victims said the robbers wore masks and were all armed. They zip-tied the 27-year-old man and his roommate and ransacked the house. They ignored the man’s 3-year-old son who was also inside the home on Fernwood in University Oaks.

Robbers pose as postal workers in SE Houston home invasion