Hampshire cricket captain James Vince has house violently vandalised twice in possible mistaken identity

James Vince, 33, has been the victim of two house attacks this year in a village east of Southampton, with police suspecting a case of mistaken identity. In both attacks, April 15 and May 11, the windows of the house and cars were smashed while his wife and two children were inside the property.

The harrowing ordeal has led Vince to release the camera footage in the hope someone may be able to provide information. In an interview with Will Macpherson of The Telegraph, the former England cricketer explained they are still none the wiser why they have been targeted, with police now suspecting it is mistaken identity.

Vince said: “All the experts we’ve spoken to say it looks like a money issue, unpaid debts or something. We have nothing to hide and know we have never been involved in anything like this. We just desperately want this to stop.

“If anyone knows anything, or sees anything in the footage of the attack that could lead to anything, please contact us or the Hampshire Police. It could be the final piece of information we need to find out what is going on and get our lives back to normal.”

The attacks have left Vince’s family shaken and wondering if another attack could happen. More damage was caused in the first attack which two people carried out with metal bars damaging windows. The Hampshire captain added extra security, including cameras, which captured the second attack involving a lone man in a hoodie with Gym King written on the back, who threw bricks at the windows.

Vince said: “For the second one, I was actually still awake upstairs. That meant I was able to get downstairs quite quickly and had more of a sense of what was going on. It obviously wasn’t such a surprise either, because it had happened before. I think they saw the activity in the house and left quickly.”

Vince is hoping someone may have some information that will help the police with their investigation and bring the situation to an end. He said: “We don’t want to risk the same thing happening again. It’s not fair on my wife or children to have to go through it again.

“Obviously something like this is hugely disruptive in our lives, especially for our children, who have understandably been affected and unsettled by the situation. Having said that, I’m amazed and extremely proud of how they have dealt with it. We have received great support locally, and from within cricket.

“We have also enlisted private security personnel, who have found some key information, which is promising. Anything more that anyone knows would be fantastic, though, because this has to end.”

Watch the video embedded in this article for the footage of the second attack captured by security cameras.