A 28-year-old man who allegedly stabbed a Speed Street neighbour multiple times causing severe cuts to her face, blood loss and a partially severed ear in April appeared before the Wangaratta Magistrates Court in custody via Webex link on Thursday 30 July.

The accused was facing multiples charges relating to the alleged Wangaratta stabbing of his neighbour, a 53-year-old woman.

The matter received some community interest with multiple people attending court.

The matter was previously heard by the court in April when it heard at about 5am on 15 April, a witness living in a nearby unit called police saying a man had been behaving erratically within the housing complex and jumping fences.

Just after 7:20am the accused returned to the complex and allegedly went to his neighbour’s unit adjacent to his.

An alleged dispute broke out between them before the man allegedly attacked the woman with a knife in her own lounge room.

He allegedly stabbed her a number of times, causing severe lacerations on her face, arm and feet, partially severed ear, and skull and neck fractures.

The same witness who had called police earlier heard the incident and allegedly pulled the man off the woman.

The woman gave the man her car keys and cigarettes in an attempt to calm him down, before he left.

Just after 9am the accused was located shirtless some two kilometres away on Weir Street, where police arrested him.

The accused told the court he attempted to jump a barbed wire fence to escape arrest and injured his wrist.

In his police interview, the man allegedly told police he couldn’t remember anything about the incident, only waking up in the bush, swimming, before being arrested.

A significant amount of blood was allegedly inside the unit and on the ground nearby.

Both the accused and the victim had been living in the units for six months.

Police had allegedly received a number of complaints regarding threatening behaviour by the accused.

The court had heard the accused had been using methylamphetamine daily.

No application was made for bail.

The matters were adjourned to 15 October for a committal mention.