UW sophomore Micah Babinski knew something was wrong when he came home to his house Saturday night and found the basement door cracked open with the lights off.

Babinski, who lives in an eight-person house on the 1700 block of Northeast 55th Street, was returning from a friend’s house a little past midnight, he said, when he noticed someone had broken into his residence.

“I asked who was there and said I was calling the cops,” Babinski said.

Babinski tried to hold the door closed while he dialed 911, but the intruders inside forced their way through and overpowered him.

The suspects, both described as white males, were armed — one with a handgun, the other with a nightstick. They forced Babinski upstairs, where his housemates were watching TV.

“I woke up to loud talking and saw a guy waving a pistol around,” said one tenant, who was asleep on the living room couch when the men broke in. “They started asking us where we kept all of our stuff. They asked where all of the girls’ purses were.”

The other tenants were in the living room as well, watching TV. The men went through their pockets, looking for electronics and cash.

At this point, Babinski, who had been mugged before on a separate occasion, decided to fight back. He struck one intruder in the face with his fist.

“They tackled me and brought the gun down on my head,” Babinski said. “After that, I was out, down for the count.”

Babinski was later taken to a hospital where he had stitches put in his head.

The tenant who was sleeping on the couch was then told to escort the two intruders downstairs.

The intruders told the tenants that if any of them tried to run or call for help, their housemate would be shot.

Once downstairs, the men proceeded to kick in a locked door where they suspected valuables would be hidden, but the door was only locked because the tenant was out of town and nothing valuable was found in the room. At that point the two intruders fled through the basement door.

The intruders stole jewelry, digital cameras, cell phones, iPods, cash and several laptops from the tenants.

The tenants waited a few minutes, then called 911. The Seattle Police Department (SPD) Crime Blotter logged the call at 12:35 a.m.

The University of Washington Police Department (UWPD) released a timely warning notification yesterday afternoon, although they were not called to the scene, UWPD Police Chief John Vinson said.

The suspects are still at large and the Robbery Detective Unit of SPD is investigating.

Babinski, who said this is the third time the house has been burglarized this school year, said this incident is the last straw for him, and he plans to leave.

“I’m done,” Babinski said. “I don’t know why people think they can just do this.”

Reach news editor Casey Smith at news@dailyuw.com.