POLICE burst into the home of a man who had a triple heart-bypass - only to discover they had raided the wrong house.

Terrified dad-of-four Abdul Ali, 44, was thrown to the floor and handcuffed by officers.

And he was so traumatised that he had to spend that night in hospital.

He said: “It was such a frightening experience. I didn’t know what was going on and they didn’t say anything. I didn’t even know it was police.”

Police smashed the front door of his home in Cromwell Street and also arrested his 16-year-old son Saif Ali.

Mr Ali, who suffers from high blood pressure and Type 1 diabetes, was left gasping for breath as he was held.

Police yesterday went to Mr Ali's house to issue a personal apology.

They were supposed to carry out a raid on a house in Clive Street just around the corner.

Mr Ali, who has lived in the area for around 16 years, was eating in his living room when police smashed their way into his home at around 5pm on Wednesday. His two daughters and other son were at a nearby mosque.

His son Saif said: “I heard the door broken down and thought it was burglars. My dad was on his own downstairs so I went to see what was happening when the police came up and handcuffed me.

“They took me downstairs and when we got the bottom step I heard someone say over their radio’s ‘we’ve got the wrong house’.

“It was a terrifying experience.”

Other members of the family, who live nearby, were soon on the scene.

Lesu Miah, 30, uncle of Saif, said: “When I arrived the police were just going to leave. They barely even said sorry.

“I told them they couldn’t leave Abdul on the floor when he was in such distress. He could hardly breathe and was hyper-ventilating.

“It is bad enough getting the wrong house but they didn’t seem to care what they had done.”

Mr Ali was taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital where he was kept in overnight following tests.

His blood sugar levels, which should normally be six or seven, were recorded at 19.9.

Doctors told his family that he came 'very close' to suffering another heart attack.

Saif said the blunder had left him feeling like a criminal and he was worried about going back to Thomas Whitham Sixth Form College.

He said: “Within ten minutes of being there on Thursday I was being called a ‘druggie’ and a ‘dealer’, I just couldn’t take it so I had to leave.

“My reputation is finished. I was deputy head boy but something like this sticks.

“People believe what they want to and it is hard to get rid of it.”

Mr Ali said: “I feel like a criminal without doing anything wrong.

“I’ve got a lot of friends around here but people believe these myths. I went to the shop today and they were asking about it.”

Chief Inspector Jon Bullas, Detective Inspector Vinny De Curtis and a police liaison officer visited the family yesterday to apologise.

They spent 35 minutes inside the house talking to the family.

Coun Shah Hussain, a family friend who represents the Daneshouse and Stoneyholme award, said: “Mr Ali is well-known in the community but something like this makes a massive difference.

“The family have never been in trouble before. In Asian communities the element of respect is quite important.

“People question it when something like this happens. The damage done could be unrepairable.”

Senior officers at Burnley have conducted a detailed review of the police operation.

Superintendent Steve Pemberton, from Burnley police station, said: “As a force we rely on information passed to us from members of the public and act on it in a variety of different ways.

“We execute hundreds of warrants every year, but unfortunately on this occasion we got the wrong address.

“We apologise unreservedly to those involved in this incident and any stress this may have caused.

“We will be paying for any damage to their property and it is my intention to ensure we learn the lessons from this mistake to avoid the same happening again.”

A police spokesman said: “The people at the address on Cromwell Street are in no way connected to drug activity.”