granddaughter. Mrs. Aukett's seventy-six year old mother was also present at the time appellant invaded the Aukett home. Pretending to be a police officer, appellant was accompanied by a confederate who pretended to be his "snitch," or informant. Appellant pointed a handgun at the Aukett family, flashed a purported police badge at them, announced that he was from "five squad," and demanded "cocaine and drugs."
To keep his victims at a psychological disadvantage, appellant menaced them with his gun, demanded identification, and stated that he would arrest everyone present. He also threatened to tear the house apart if the Auketts did not produce contraband substances. When they explained that they had no drugs, appellant forced Mrs. Aukett to accompany him to her bedroom, and then to the kitchen, whereappellant testified that he had kept an appointment with Ms. Allison Bell, an employee of the City of Philadelphia, at 121 North Broad Street and that he had been accompanied on this expedition by Michele Shaner. N.T. 12/21/89 at 35-36. As a corroborative detail for his story, appellant explained that he and Michele stopped to talk with Deputy Sheriff Maturo who was on duty with the K-9 unit at City Hall. Id. at 37. Michele Shaner, a seven year old girl, corroborated appellant's testimony regarding the trip to Ms. Bell's office and the fact that she saw a "cop" on duty with his dog. Id. at 24-26. Despite the fact that the Commonwealth had never been notified that she would appear as a witness for appellant, Ms. Bell