Baker disobeyed orders by exchanging his military uniform for civilian clothes and going to stay at a farmhouse where, hosted by the Ebbens family, he and PFC Bachenheimer went for walks around the area during the day and within sight of German troops. On the night of 16–17 October the house was raided by German forces. Baker and Bachenheimer were arrested while sleeping and taken as prisoners of war. The Ebbens family were all executed. Baker's superiors were furious that his disobedience threatened the rescue, Operation Pegasus, of hundreds of British paratroopers stranded in German-controlled territory.