Chet Hanks Punches Alleged Burglar at His Home

Chet Hanks must defend his house, and he’ll do it with his bare fists, as a man who was allegedly trying to get into Chet’s place found out the hard way … TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us … before authorities arrived early Monday morning, Tom Hanks‘ son punched the 42-year-old suspect after finding him attempting to break in around 3:00 AM. When L.A. County Sheriff’s deputies got on scene they tried to slap cuffs on the man, but he kept fighting.

Eventually, they subdued him enough to get cuffs on him … but while leading him to the car, the guy fell backward onto one of the deputies, who ended up with a broken leg!!!

Both men had to be taken to a hospital for treatment. Once he was medically cleared, the suspect was booked for burglary. As for Chet … at least physically, he was unscathed.