Brick wall built in front of man's door while he slept

A brick wall was built in front of a man's front door in Germany while he slept. Credit: Brian Ach/Invision/AP

A man in Germany has started the new year with quite a shock - after finding himself bricked in to his own home.

The home owner in Mainhausen, Hesse, opened his front door on Monday to find someone had quietly built a brick wall in front of it during the night, police confirmed.

Police commented in an official statement that the act must have made the victim feel "like a Berliner in August 1961".

Officer Ingbert Zacharias told German news outlet Hessenshau.de: "The man opened his door in the morning and stood in front of a wall...Trick or jerk, we do not know."

The strange occurrence is still being investigated and is estimated to have caused several hundred euros of damage.