A police spokesman said: "Shortly before midnight, Mark Croft, 36, his wife, Kerry Katona, 26, and their young baby, Heidi, who was five months old, were confronted in their home by three masked men.

"All the intruders were wearing balaclavas and they were armed with a sledgehammer, crowbar and large knife similar to a kitchen knife.

"This experience was extremely alarming to the family.

"One of the offenders remained in a downstairs room with the mother and baby while the other two offenders made Mr Croft accompany them through the house while they identified property to steal."

A Cheshire Police spokeswoman said they were keen to speak to anyone who had seen the car, registration MF06 KMM.


Kerry unimpressed with blow-up Posh - May 29 2007
Kerry Katona has hit out at Victoria Beckham’s use of a blow-up doll to distract the paparazzi, describing the stunt as "embarrassing".

Posh sent photographers on a wild goose chase through Los Angeles last week when she sent her car out carrying the blonde inflatable, then set off minutes later with nobody waiting for her.

But writing in OK! magazine, the former Atomic Kitten star said Victoria needed to realise the photographers are the reason she’s famous.

"I was gobsmacked," she said. "It’s a bit embarrassing really, because at the end of the day I don’t think Victoria would be who she was without the press - she’s like me at the minute, famous for just being famous in her personal life.

"The paparazzi sit outside our house every day but I usually just say, ’Alright, how you doing?’ At the end of the day they’re just doing their jobs."

Since leaving Atomic Kitten in 2001, Kerry has appeared on several daytime TV shows and won the 2004 series of I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!

Baby girl for Kerry - Feb 20 2007
Kerry Katona gave birth to a baby girl today, four weeks prematurely.

The former Atomic Kitten and new husband Mark Croft have named her Heidi Elizabeth.

She was born at Warrington General Hospital at 1pm by Caesarean section, weighing 5lbs.

"Mother and baby are doing fine," said her spokesman Max Clifford.

The 26-year-old married cab driver Mark, 35, at Gretna Green on Valentine’s Day. The couple met a year ago and he proposed after three weeks.

She had a sizeable bump at the wedding and Clifford said: "The baby was a little early but that wasn’t too much of a surprise. Nobody believed Kerry would go to full term because she was absolutely huge.

"It seems the little one wanted to get out sooner rather than later."

This is the third girl for Kerry and her first with Croft. She already has daughters Molly, five, and Lilly Sue, four, by former husband Brian McFadden.

Kerry also revealed she’d been under stress to OK! magazine.

"Apparently the most stressful things are getting divorced, getting married, moving house and having a baby - and I’m doing all four at once!" she said.

The I’m A Celebrity winner had a false alarm a week ago when she thought her waters had broken.

And she admitted she couldn’t wait until the baby was born.

"It’s been the worst pregnancy ever. It’s made me want to have my tubes tied, get the coil, go on the Pill and get Mark the snip - that’s how much I’ve hated it."

Kerry: Another divorce would kill me - Feb 20 2007
Kerry Katona spent her wedding night apart from husband Mark Croft after a furious bust-up - and is terrified the marriage will end in divorce, she revealed today.