A family with a baby in Wall Township was awakened by intruders in their home early Monday morning in a shocking incident that was caught on camera.

“Little did I know that I'm waking up to people in my house trying to steal,” said homeowner Michael Walters.

Waters said he was jolted out of bed at 4 a.m. Monday morning because he knew something was wrong.

He says thieves pried open a window downstairs, went into his house and grabbed a set of keys they thought belonged to Walters’ wife’s Range Rover - all while his 17-month-old boy slept.

When they saw that the keys started the other car, they fled.

“I wake my wife up, I say…’Can you look on your phone? Call the cops.’ She looks on her phone, she says, ‘Yes,

there's people here,’” Walters said.

Police officers arrived shortly after the call.

“We actually had an officer right on the traffic circle. He was able to intercept the car on the way to the Garden State Parkway, as everyone knows it was just recovering from a snowstorm that evening. Frigid temps making the roads very icy,” said Wall Township Police Chief Sean O’Halloran.

The thieves took off in a previously stolen vehicle, passing salt crews.

Police called off the chase once speeds hit 100 mph, due to the danger to others on the road.

Waters moved from Savannah, Georgia to Wall in 2020 – and says he’s sharing his story because he wants change.

“Yeah, I'm angry. I'm very angry. I'm angry that I live in a state where I cannot defend myself, I cannot defend my family without repercussions coming up on myself,” he said.

Gov. Phil Murphy passed laws last fall that strengthened penalties for people who are found guilty of home invasions and home burglaries. Auto thefts dropped 11% - not enough, says O’Halloran. “We’ve had enough and it’s time to take back our town and make it safe for our residents.”

“I was the lucky one. What happens if it happens to somebody else? What if it was worse? The next time around I don't want to see that happen,” added Waters.

O’Halloran is calling for juveniles suspected of committing these crimes to remain incarcerated through the legal process and is also asking for more federal funding for tools like license plate readers and other tracking devices.