Matthew Bilotta, Lara Buttriss and Grace Buttriss front court after alleged break-in and hammer attack
Two young sisters and one of their ex-partners from south western Sydney allegedly broke into a home and attacked the two residents with a hammer in a “spur of the moment” assault.
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Two young sisters and one of their ex-partners from south western Sydney allegedly broke into a home and attacked the two residents with a hammer in a “spur of the moment” assault.
Lara Buttriss, 23, from Oran Park, Grace Therese Buttriss, 18, from Harrington Park, and Matthew John Bilotta, 25, from Hill Top faced Picton Court on Friday after being charged with a violent break-in.
All three accused have been charged with aggravated break and enter to commit a serious indictable offence in company and two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm in the company of others.
Police allege the young trio broke into a home on Onslow Ave in Camden at around 6.30pm on February 5 and assaulted the two residents.
During the fight, the court documents state Lara entered the home and wielded a hammer to attack the two male occupants of the house and cause them actual bodily harm.
The court previously heard there was no evidence the three young people had been armed with the hammer when they approached the house. The lawyer for the Buttriss sisters, Chris Hammond, characterised the offence as a “spur of the moment thing”.
Police allege they have obtained a recording from an intercepted phone call of Mr Bilotta talking about trying to find a “standover man” to threaten and intimidate the witnesses and force them to withdraw their evidence.
According to police allegations, Grace was allegedly party to the phone conversation but there is no suggestion she agreed with his proposal.
Court documents show Lara and Grace Buttriss are sisters and Mr Bilotta is Lara’s former partner, with whom she has a child and an amicable relationship.
The court heard the charges laid against the accused aren’t compatible with the sequence of events alleged by police. All three have been charged with the use of a hammer, despite the police allegation that Lara was the person in possession of the hammer.
The court heard only a partial brief of evidence was served to the defence, which contained a large volume of information. The prosecution requested an adjournment for a month to ensure the full brief could be delivered.
Both Buttriss sisters remain in the community after being granted bail during their first appearance at Picton Court on February 8.
Court documents show Lara is a single mother and Grace is a disability worker who lives with her elder sister. Neither sister has a criminal record, according to the documents.
In contrast, the documents show Mr Bilotta had only been released from prison for violent offences the month before he was allegedly involved in this incident. He was refused bail in February and has remained in custody on remand since his arrest.
Mr Bilotta appeared in Picton Court via audiovisual link in his prison greens, and the Bilotta sisters craned to see him from where they sat in the courtroom.
All three accused will return to Picton court on April 22.
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