A MANHUNT is under way for an intruder who broke into a Queensland home and tried to snatch a sleeping six-year-old girl from her bed.

Police said the man punched the girl in the face when she screamed to alert her parents.

The man climbed the fence of her home in Loganlea, south of Brisbane, at about 5am on Monday and unlocked the back entrance by reaching through a dog door.

He made his way past her sleeping parents and a relative to her upstairs bedroom and, after scooping her from her bed, almost left the home with the child sleeping in his arms.

“She just thought it was one of her parents moving her,” Detective Senior Sergeant Grant Ralston told reporters at Logan police station.

“It wasn’t until she entered the downstairs area that she realised it wasn’t.”

The man told the girl to keep quiet and covered her mouth but she broke free from his grasp and screamed.

“The offender has cowardly assaulted the child by punching her,” Det Sen Sgt Ralston said.

Her parents were woken by the commotion and her father confronted the child snatcher.

He managed to escape and was last seen riding away on a BMX bike.

Det Sen Sgt Ralston said the man had first been seen in the area about 90 minutes before the attempted kidnapping.

“It does appear opportunistic,” he said.

He urged people to be vigilant about home security.

“Please lock your homes. Be safe, be secure,” he said. “This person’s obviously up to no good.”

Investigations continue and detectives are questioning the girl and her parents.

The incident is being investigated by detectives from the Logan Child Protection and Investigation Unit (CPIU)

The suspect is described as having a dark complexion, aged in his early 20s, wearing long pants, a charcoal hoodie and last seen riding a BMX bike.

Anyone with information was urged to call CrimeStoppers on 1800 333 000.

With AAP