Rodney James Pearce, infamous for bizarre Larry Emdur incident, faces court for Corio milk bar bashing

A Corio man who was the subject of a restraining order issued to protect Logie winner Larry Emdur, has pleaded guilty to a vicious assault on the owner of a milk bar.

The milk bar on Sharland Rd where the assault occurred, Picture: Supplied.

A Corio man who sparked a security scare when he walked into Channel 7’s headquarters trying to find Larry Emdur has pleaded guilty to the brutal assault of a Geelong milk bar owner.

Rodney James Pearce, 52, appeared in Geelong County Court on Wednesday from Ravenshall Correctional Centre, where he has been held on remand for 190 days.

Crown prosecutor Raphael de Vietri told Judge Michael O’Connell the incident occurred in January 2024 at the milk bar on Sharland Rd, where owner Cheata Ung lived with his wife and children in the adjoining property.

Corio’s Rodney James Pearce.

The court heard Pearce “yelled” at Mr Ung’s children earlier in the morning during a separate confrontation.

Pearce returned to store later and asked for free cigarettes.

After he was told no, he came over the counter, punched the perspex screen and “tore it away from its position”.

He then burst through and destroyed the wooden sliding door on the side of the counter before “assaulting the victim, repeatedly punching him, hitting the victim in the mouth”, the court heard.

“At one point he held the victim in a headlock,” Mr Vietri said.

After punching Mr Ung several times in the face, Pearce was ripped away from him by a female customer who shoved him outside.

In a victim impact statement read by Mr Vietri, Mr Ung said the incident was so traumatic he did not return to work for almost a year.

“I probably lost $30K to $40K not working. My wife was also scared,” he wrote.

Mr Ung said he struggled to fall asleep after the incident because he feared Pearce would return to burn down his shop and family home.

Pearce pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary, common law assault and damaging property.

It comes after Pearce last year made headlines when he walked into Channel 7’s Sydney studio, allegedly demanding to see Gold Logie winning TV host Larry Emdur.

NSW police subsequently took out an apprehended violence order (AVO) for Mr Emdur against Pearce.

At the time, Pearce told News Corp he “walked into a building and walked out” and said Mr Emdur was his “friend”.

TV’s Larry Emdur took out a restraining order against Pearce last year. Picture: Justin Lloyd.

Pearce’s lawyer told the court on Wednesday that he had a long history of mental health conditions, including borderline personality disorder, severe depression and complex PTSD.

“They have not been helped by long-term alcohol and substance use,” she said.

Pearce will be sentenced on June 23.

Originally published as Rodney James Pearce, infamous for bizarre Larry Emdur incident, faces court for Corio milk bar bashing