A WODONGA man linked to a home invasion at Springdale Heights last year through DNA left on a knife at the scene was yesterday refused bail in Albury Court.
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Adam Jay Azzi appeared in custody before registrar Brian Fenn on a charge of aggravated break and enter inflicting actual bodily harm.
Mr Azzi, 32, was arrested by police on Tuesday afternoon after being involved in a car accident at Lavington.
He tried to hide in a car park in Albury but the police were advised of his whereabouts by a member of the public.
The court was told in tendered police facts that Mr Azzi and another man forced their way into a Springdale Heights house between 12.20am and 1am on January 12 last year.
A man, his de facto and two children, 9 and 4, lived at the house, with the older child suffering various disabilities.
One of the intruders was wearing a balaclava and the other man with a dark complexion forced his way in, saying: “Don’t do anything or I’ll shoot you”.
Both men began assaulting the male resident with an iron bar and the child, 9, screamed for his mother.
The man’s de facto took the child to another room and rang the police.
The two men throughout the incident kept demanding “money and drugs”.
They took many packs of prescription medication belonging to the disabled boy along with his father’s wallet, cigarettes and mobile phone.
The victim found a knife used by one of the offenders after they left.
His de facto received a phone call on her mobile phone a short time later and was told: “If you tell anyone about tonight, we’ll be back with guns”.
The call was later traced to a phone box in the South Albury area.
The victim was taken to hospital and treated for a laceration to his right eye, swelling, bruising and tenderness to his jaw, multiple bruises and abrasions to his chest.
Police sent the knife for examination and it revealed the DNA of Mr Azzi, who last year spent time in prison in Victoria.
Investigators spoke to him in October last year but he declined to comment.
Solicitor Charles Aitken claimed yesterday it was “a relatively weak prosecution case” against Mr Azzi.
He will reappear in Albury Court today before magistrate Peter Dare.