By ANNA ANDREWS

anna.andrews@dailyexaminer.com.au

A YAMBA family turned text messages into a crime-fighting tool by contacting thieves who had broken into their home.

By SMSing the offenders, the family demanded their property be returned.

Two cars, four sets of keys, mobile phones, credit cards and cash were stolen from the Clarence Street house early Saturday morning, while its occupants were asleep.

After being awakened at 5am, one family member confronted an adult intruder and chased him out of the house before discovering the cars and other items were missing.

"One of the car owners sent a message to the stolen phones, and the thieves responded," the man said.

"There were a few dirty messages which went back and forth before a plea for the cars to be returned, which they were."

Speaking from his Yamba home yesterday, the man said the thieves dropped off both cars, one out of petrol, around the corner from the home.

"They (the thieves) just took off," he said.

"We ended up with three of the four sets of keys back.

"Friends and neighbours found them in gardens and bushes.

"It had to be kids or teenagers because the drivers' seats were pulled well forward.

"We're all still a bit shocked by it."