A woman assaulted by a man numerous times could smell a dog's fur burning after he used a blowtorch on its face, police documents have alleged.
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Clarke John Menzies, 45, is accused of using a blowtorch on a dog who tried to help the woman after she sustained bleeding from his alleged assaults.
Police documents tendered to the court state that around midnight on February 16, Mr Menzies grabbed a butane blowtorch and became "fixed" on the dog, called Dozer, after it bit the accused on the left calf to help the woman.
Mr Menzies turned the blowtorch on and allegedly pushed it into Dozer's face while screaming and yelling at both the dog and woman, who could smell Dozer's fur burning from the flame.
Earlier that night, the south Canberra man grabbed a canvas and used it to strike the woman in the face, body and crotch.
Police documents state that she was "cowering, holding her arms to protect her face" and pleading "please stop, please stop".
The accused then grabbed a black metal dividing gate and thrusted it towards her crotch. The gate struck her hands and forearms while she held them up in defence.
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About three months later in a separate incident, Mr Menzies allegedly destroyed the front of a property and a car.
"There was water all over the front steps, a string of smashed connected solar lights and a smashed outdoor light," police documents state.
Mr Menzies appeared via video link in the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday charged with animal cruelty, two counts of assaults with one of them being occasioning actual bodily harm and three counts of damaging property.
He has pleaded not guilty to all charges except for one count of property damage to which he has not pleaded.
In court, the prosecutor applied to revoke his bail, saying it was based on the accused's likelihood of reoffending and the seriousness of the charges.
"Each complainant had previously indicated that they had fears about the defendant if released into the community," she said.
He slows down after he is medicated and his mental state is drastically improved.
- Defence solicitor Emma Bayliss
The prosecutor said Mr Menzies was given bail twice in May and she cited his criminal history, which included common assault.
The court also heard that a previous magistrate said if he breached bail or reoffended then it was suspected that bail would be refused.
Defence solicitor Emma Bayliss at Boxall Legal said her client's alleged offending had the common feature of "significant deterioration of his mental health conditions".
Ms Bayliss said he was "doing quite well" on depot injections before May 29 but became "highly erratic, muttering to himself" since missing a number of injections.
"Moving forward, he's keen to be on his medication again," Ms Bayliss said.
"He slows down after he is medicated and his mental state is drastically improved."
Ms Bayliss said that accommodation through Justice Housing had been arranged with the support of CatholicCare.
She said the treatment plan and stable accommodation would ameliorate the likelihood of reoffending.
"Accommodation is an important stabilising factor for him," she said.
Magistrate James Lawton refused the prosecution's application and said Mr Menzies had a longstanding mental health issue.
Mr Lawton said that while there was a "clear connection between the decline of his medication and non-compliance with bail conditions", he granted bail but in an "amended form".
The court heard that the accused previously spent two weeks in Canberra Hospital as part of a mental health assessment order.
Mr Menzies is scheduled to face court again on July 20.
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