Vic police hunt 'Goldilocks' intruder

A man is on the run after being chased from a Melbourne house by a couple who had returned home to find him sleeping in their bed.

The man, aged in his 20s, has been dubbed a "modern-day Goldilocks" by Victoria Police after he broke into the Donvale home and dragged the couple's mattress into the living room before falling asleep under a doona.

The husband and wife filmed the man in bed as they woke him up about 11am on Thursday.

The intruder said there were others in the house and when the husband went to search for them the man grabbed the wife and held a knife to her throat, police allege.

"It's very bizarre behaviour," Senior Constable Brendan Keane told reporters on Tuesday as police released the footage of the intruder.

"It doesn't appear he has actually stolen anything or (that) there was any motive to steal anything."

Police say the man, who may have been intending to squat at the property, subsequently fled on foot with the husband in hot pursuit.

He was last seen disappearing into nearby bushland.

Sen Const Keane said the intruder had tanned skin, a distinct tattoo across his left chest and was wearing a New York Yankees cap and black shorts at the time.