An Australian yoga teacher has recalled how he feared for his life during a terrifying home invasion in Bali that left him seriously injured.
Joe, 39, and his girlfriend were sleeping at their holiday home in the coastal town of Canggu when he was woken by a masked intruder who entered their room in the early hours of October 17.
He jumped out of bed and became involved in a struggle with the armed man.
“I was sleeping in bed with my girlfriend and (woke up) to an intruder in my house,” he said. 7 news.
“So (I got tired) of approaching him and at that last moment I recognized that he was holding a big knife, so (my) instinct was to just grab the blade.”
The pair struggled over the knife before Joe managed to grab the gun from the robber and threw it under the bed.
Joe suffered serious injuries during the violent confrontation, including a broken arm and several lacerations to a finger.
He chased the man into the living room before he smashed a photo frame over Joe’s head.
Australian yoga teacher Joe (pictured) feared he and his girlfriend would be stabbed to death when a masked intruder entered their room.
CCTV footage captured the moment the robber fell while fleeing the scene with Joe’s possessions including his laptop, wallet and passport.
A frantic Joe sought help from a convenience store shopkeeper after emergency services failed to respond to his calls.
He rushed to Siloam Hospital, where he spent a week before his sister helped him organize a flight back to Perth.
Joe has since undergone four surgeries at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital before being discharged earlier this week.
Joe (pictured) had to undergo four separate surgeries at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital after flying back to Perth to have his injuries treated by specialists.
Specialists inserted a metal plate to secure the bones between Joe’s fingers and the wrist of his left hand.
He also underwent surgery to cut off his middle finger and repair nerve damage to his right thumb.
Joe will now undergo three months of hand therapy and take antibiotics, including codeine, to control the pain.
‘We are just grateful to be alive. “You wouldn’t expect something like this to happen,” he said.
Several weeks later, Joe is still traumatized by the incident and has lost faith in the Indonesian authorities’ ability to investigate the incident.
You have created a GoFundMe page to cover the costs of his medical bills, stolen possessions, emergency documents and his airfare, which he estimates is worth more than $20,000.
CCTV footage captured the moment the thief fled the scene (pictured) after stealing Joe’s laptop, wallet and passport.
So far almost $3,900 has been raised, with the goal being $15,000.
Joe has spent the last seven years traveling between Australia and Bali and runs his own business as a yoga instructor in this popular tourist destination.
He is not sure when he will return to Bali.
