A Canberra man suffered a fractured skull, eye socket, cheekbone and arm when he was repeatedly hit with a metal shopping trolley handle in an assault he described as "the most painful thing he has ever felt", police allege.
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A woman who previously had a seven-year relationship with the man was refused bail when she appeared in the ACT Magistrates Court on Monday to face charges over the alleged incident.
Court documents reveal the woman's new boyfriend has also been charged. They are not being named to protect the alleged victim's identity.
In documents tendered to the court, police say the alleged victim arranged with the woman on February 24 to collect his property from the home they previously shared.
Shortly before the man arrived, the woman allegedly said in a recorded phone call that he was "going on a long holiday". Officers believe this to be a reference to the man being about to receive serious injuries.
When the man reached the home, he started loading his belongings into a ute.
Police allege that while this was happening, the woman's new boyfriend hit the man without warning in the left cheekbone and eye socket using a metal shopping trolley handle.
The woman's new boyfriend then struck the man another two or three times over the head, according to court documents, before hitting him in the arm, leg and back once the man fell to the ground in pain.
Police claim the woman told one of her sons in a recorded phone call at the time of the incident that she could hear "the mallet hitting the concrete, if you get my meaning", and that she might have some cleaning to do.
In another recorded call a few hours later, she allegedly discussed the man's injuries with her son and laughed as she said: "It is called karma".
She is also accused of saying she had an alibi because she was on the phone at the time of the incident, and that the internet had gone down so there was no CCTV footage from the home's security system.
Police officers who went to the home that night found blood and established a crime scene, according to court documents.
Officers found a hose they suspected had been used to destroy blood evidence, while a preliminary examination of a hard drive containing footage from the CCTV system led police to believe it had been manually searched before they arrived to ensure there was no video evidence of the alleged attack.
Police also say that when they interviewed the woman on February 24 and 25, she lied about issues including her new boyfriend's whereabouts on the day in question.
In the weeks following the incident, police intercepted phone calls and text messages that they allege show the woman further attempted to pervert the course of justice.
She is accused of attempting to arrange an alibi for her new boyfriend, and trying to "turn the tables" on the alleged victim by taking her daughter to police to claim that the alleged victim had sexually assaulted the girl.
Police arrested the woman on Sunday and she was charged with intentionally inflicting grievous bodily harm by joint commission, and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
She did not enter pleas when she appeared in court and applied for bail on Monday.
Prosecutors opposed bail, citing the risk of the woman committing offences, fleeing the ACT and interfering with evidence.
But duty lawyer Jan de Bruin said the woman was not a flight risk because she had strong ties to the ACT, and that there appeared to be "very limited opportunity" for her to interfere with evidence given police had already conducted an investigation for about three weeks.
Dr de Bruin said bail conditions could mitigate the perceived risks, but Magistrate Bernadette Boss disagreed.
Dr Boss said the allegations were of "very significant offences" and the prosecution appeared to have a strong case.
The woman is due back in court later this month. Her new boyfriend also remains before the court.
