A Florey man is behind bars after he allegedly climbed through his ex-partner's bedroom window while she slept and tried to choke her in the middle of the night.
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Amjed Abdulsalam Hilal, 32, took the woman's phone so she couldn't call police and then refused to leave her apartment in the hours after he allegedly attacked and threatened to kill her the morning of February 7.
He did not enter pleas to charges of assault, choking and threatening to kill when he faced the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday.
A police statement of facts alleged Hilal hid outside the woman's open window until she fell asleep and he crept inside about 3am.
When the woman woke up and realised Hilal was in her room she was scared because she didn't want to see him and had taken back his key, court documents said.
She asked him to leave but he allegedly refused and grabbed the woman by the hands, saying he wanted to talk and accusing her of cheating on him.
As he told her not to shout she pulled her hands away and she slapped him twice on the face.
Hilal then allegedly shoved the woman onto the bed and restrained her arms before he straddled her, pinning her down with his legs.
He allegedly slapped her twice in the face as he held her there, causing the side of her mouth to bleed.
Court documents said Hilal then wrapped his arms around the woman's neck and squeezed until she couldn't breathe for a moment and was then left gasping for air.
She tried to call police but the accused allegedly took her phone.
A short time later the pair went outside where Hilal allegedly punched the woman in the stomach before he's alleged to have said:
"I'm going to kill you tonight, or you will kill me.
"Either way, everything will be finished tonight."
He then allegedly dragged her to a reserve behind the home, covering her mouth to muffle her screams before she escaped and ran back to her bedroom where she said she passed out from exhaustion.
The woman woke up to see Hilal allegedly laying on the bed beside her about 6am.
She again asked him to go but he allegedly refused, keeping hold of her phone so she couldn't call for help and following her around the house as she got ready in the morning.
The woman eventually left the house and reported the incident to police, who later interviewed Hilal with the help of an Arabic interpreter.
He denied going into the woman's bedroom through her window, saying he went in through a sliding door and she had never taken back his key.
Hilal also said he hadn't dragged the woman outside or threatened to kill her.
He admitted he'd put his hands around her throat but said he'd pushed her into the kitchen wall to "calm her down".
Police spoke with the woman again and Hilal was arrested.
Prosecutor Sarah McFarland opposed a bail application in court on grounds Hilal was a flight risk and could interfere with the witness.
She said Hilal had tried to contact the woman, saying he was sorry and he loved her, after he had been served with an interim domestic violence order.
"The complainant told police she's scared of the defendant and doesn't want anything to do with him," Ms McFarland said.
Defence lawyer Darryl Perkins noted Hilal had denied the allegations and the fact he wasn't a confident English-speaker, and said he would stay away from his ex-partner if released.
Hilal was refused bail.
The case returns to court in March.
