Wyong: David `Rooster’ Garland pleads guilty to a vicious assault over borrowed drill

A 61-year-old man has pleaded guilty to giving a neighbour a vicious beating, leaving him with a broken nose and fractured eye socket, over a borrowed drill, a court has heard.

A man has pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm in company following an argument over a borrowed hammer drill.

David Garland, also known as “Rooster”, faced Wyong Local Court on Tuesday where his solicitor applied to have his bail reporting conditions reduced to three days a week.

His solicitor told the court Garland wanted to continue his community service work with a church at Singleton where he now lived.

However Magistrate Caleb Franklin said given the “beating” Garland inflicted on the victim, his admission of guilt and the easing of border restrictions meant he was even more of a flight risk.

Magistrate Franklin did consent to extending his curfew by two hours a day.

An agreed set of facts states Garland and another man, Jai Parsons, 30, moved into a house on Jennings St at Wyong in 2019.

They met a neighbour two doors down who had been living in the street with a housemate for several years.

Some time before December 22 last year Mr Parsons borrowed a hammer drill from their 45-year-old neighbour.

On December 21 the neighbour sent Mr Parsons a text message which read “Want my drill back” and “Don’t forget you got it”.

Mr Parsons rang him back but he didn’t answer so he left him a voicemail which said “Hi it’s me c..t. What the drill dog, hey”, the facts state.

The neighbour let Mr Parsons borrow a hammer drill but he wanted it back. (File photo)

The neighbour sent another text which read “Whoo whoo puppy” and “Sereusy (sic) you are gay c..t, if my hammer drill ant (sic) back o my god I am friteb (sic)”.

The next day the neighbour sent Mr Parsons another text which read “You and your Dad came and got it I want my drill back”.

Later the neighbour was having a few beers in his loungeroom when both Mr Parsons and Garland came to his front door.

“The complainant opened the door and grabbed a baseball bat to protect himself,” the facts state.

“As he was reaching for the baseball bat, both the accused jumped over the coffee table, pushed the complainant against the side of the lounge and (allegedly) began assaulting him.”

While this was happening the victim’s flatmate was watching from his bedroom, which had a view straight into the lounge room, the facts state.

61-year-old `Rooster’ lost his glassed during the assault of his neighbour. Picture: NewsLocal

Mr Parsons allegedly held the victim down with the baseball bat across his throat and said to Garland “Rooster, punch the shit out of him”.

“Garland then started punching the complainant in the face,” the facts state.

“The complainant was able to get up, regain his balance and managed to get the baseball bat back. However both the co-accuseds overpowered him and both (allegedly) started punching him again, including punching him in both the face and eyes.”

The victim managed to get them out of the house but Garland started complaining he had lost his glasses inside.

Eventually Mr Parsons and Garland left and the victim handed his housemate his mobile phone to call an ambulance and police.

The man was taken to hospital where CAT scans showed a “displaced fracture of the nasal arch and a left orbital blow out fracture” and he remained in hospital for two days.

Police attended the co-accused’s house and later an officer attended Mr Parson’s dad’s house on Owen Ave, Wyong.

The facts state the officer overheard three males including Garland who said to Mr Parson’s father “he made me go in and f..k him up”, to which the males started laughing.

More police arrived and they asked who Rooster was and Garland identified himself. He had dried blood on his legs.

He was taken to Wyong Police Station where he was interviewed and told officers they went to the victim’s house to find out why he was sending threatening messages and he came at them with a baseball bat.

He told police Mr Parsons had done nothing and the victim had “king hit” him at the pub some time ago but denied it was “payback” for that.

The victim gave a statement to police on Boxing Day where he told officers he was still in pain and swallowing blood.

The court heard Mr Parsons was also charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm in company but had pleaded not guilty and was listed for trial in the District Court next year.

Garland was adjourned for sentence on February 8, 2022.