A love triangle between a woman, her husband and his best friend was the catalyst for a violent confrontation inside a Kiama granny flat in the early hours of Sunday morning, a court has heard.
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Police allege Eli Maguire, 36, was angry and drunk when he let himself into the victim’s Shoalhaven Street home around 1.30am and began attacking him with a bedside lamp.
It is allegedly Maguire put a knife to the man’s throat during the ordeal, which police claim was provoked by Maguire’s belief that his wife had been having an affair with the victim.
Court documents said Maguire, a fly-in, fly-out worker, repeatedly hit his former friend with the lamp base, leaving the man with severe swelling and cuts to his face.
The victim sought refuge inside the main house with his mother, with the woman later telling police her son was “naked and stumbling...struggling to keep his balance”.
The woman phoned police, who arrived to discover Maguire outside the premises, allegedly still holding the bloodied lamp.
He was bare-chested, with a black, long-sleeved shirt tied around his waist and was wearing khaki work pants soaked in blood.
There was also a large amount of blood on his hands, police claim.
It is alleged Maguire admitted his crime when spoken to by police, saying “he has been f—king my missus so I came around her and flogged the f—k out of him”.
Officers took photos of the crime scene and seized the knife allegedly used in the attack. They also took Maguire’s clothing as evidence.
He was taken to Lake Illawarra Police Station and charged with break and enter, use of an offensive weapon, property damage and assault.
Maguire sought bail in Wollongong Local COurt on Monday, with his lawyer, Jeff David, noting the victim was yet to give a statement.
“My understanding is he’s unlikely to provide one,” Mr David said.
Magistrate Michael Stoddart granted Maguire strict conditional bail, which included an order banning him from approaching or contacting the victim.