A former Illawarra man accused of holding his girlfriend hostage inside a Port Kembla home at knife point and forcing her to take anti-psychotic drugs has elected to take his case to trial.
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Mark Johnson, 34, had only been dating the woman for three months when he allegedly detained her inside their house on Northcliffe Drive for more than 24 hours one weekend in July 2017.
It is alleged Johnson repeatedly threatened the woman’s life, telling her “you’re going to die today”.
Court documents reveal Johnson woke the victim from her sleep around midday on July 23 and began berating her and throwing items around the unit because she was “neglecting him”.
Police claim he then armed himself with two knives and threatened the woman, telling her “I’ve had it, you’re playing games and you do not love me... you’re treating me like a dog. You’re done for.”
It is alleged Johnson locked the front door so the woman couldn’t leave before binding the woman’s hands and mouth with a tea towel.
“You’re lucky I haven’t knocked you already,” he allegedly told her as he paced around the unit before eventually cutting her free.
The woman told police Johnson then picked up her anti-psychotic medication and threw them at her, telling her to take multiple tablets.
The woman said she refused, prompting Johnson to allegedly tell her “you can die a violent death by the knives or take the tablets and make it look like a drug overdose.”
The woman said she took the tablets and eventually fell asleep. She claimed when she woke on Monday morning, Johnson acted like nothing had happened.
The woman said she went to Kmart to get quotes for car tyres before returning to the unit, however the pair got into another argument, prompting the woman to flee.
She reported the alleged incident to police a short time later.
Johnson was arrested and charged with offences of kidnapping, property damage and administering a poison with intent to distress.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges during a recent court appearance in Wollongong where it was revealed he has been living in Broken Hill while on bail.
The case will now be transferred to the NSW District Court, where a trial date is expected to be set down for early next year.
