KUALA LUMPUR: A gutsy woman fought off three robbers who wanted to rape her daughter at their home in Jalan Gombak here on Monday morning.

Earlier, the 44-year-old woman and her two daughters, aged 28 and 25, had cowered in fear as the three men, claiming to be policemen from Bukit Aman, had ransacked their house.

After relieving the mother and daughters of jewellery and mobile phones worth RM9,000, the robbers turned their attention to the 25-year-old woman.

When the robbers grabbed her and took her into a room in the house, the mother flew into a rage. She scratched, kicked and screamed at the robbers.

The unarmed robbers were caught by surprise and not wanting to attract attention from neighbours, they fled in a Proton Wira Aeroback.

Sentul police chief Assistant Commissioner Zakaria Pagan said the drama unfolded at 6am when three men knocked on the door of the house.

Claiming to be policemen, they alleged that the family was harbouring an Indonesian maid who did not have any legal documents.

Before the mother, who is a divorcee, could protest, the three had pushed past her and entered the house.

"The suspects then proceeded to ransack the house, while the victims watched helplessly," said Zakaria.

After grabbing several handphones, the men, who were unarmed, then threatened to harm the women if they did not surrender their jewellery.

Zakaria said police were trying to trace the suspects through the car they were using. The suspects are said to be locals in their 30s. The police chief advised the public to be more alert when approached by people claiming to be policemen.

"There have been several such incidents reported in the district," said Zakaria, adding that it could not be ascertained whether the same group was linked to all the cases.

"A genuine policeman will show his authority card and introduce himself. The people can insist on being shown the card before allowing a policeman into the house."