AN ARMED man who wore a balaclava during a break-in targeting a victim with special needs will only serve a year in jail for the offence.
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The man targeted by Craig Raymond Simmonds told The Border Mail he still feels scared inside his own home following the incident last April.
Simmonds - who was sentenced in the Wodonga County Court on Friday - will be freed next month.
Judge Richard Smith said the victim, who has schizophrenia and uses a walking stick, was “still visibly shaken, anxious and emotional recalling the incident” four days after the attack.
Simmonds had stuffed socks in the man’s mouth at his Docking Street unit, forced to him to the ground and bound his hands and feet.
The 46-year-old had been wearing a black balaclava, black hoodie and black jeans at the time, and had been armed with a baseball bat.
He believed the victim, 38, may have had medication he could steal.
Simmonds, who has had an addiction to ice and other drugs, rifled through the medications and left with the victim's credit card.
But he entered the wrong PIN number into an ATM on High Street, causing the card to be sized.
He was arrested by detectives near the scene of the crime on April 9.
Judge Richard Smith noted the impact the incident has had on the resident.
"He was scared when you entered the unit," he told the court.
"He thought he was going to be hurt by you, and he suffered from anxiety since that event."
While Judge Smith imposed a 12-month jail term, he noted Simmonds had already served more than 330 days in custody, which means he will be released in about five weeks.