Man denies Geraldton home invasion

Police have arrested a 22-year-old man over an alleged home invasion last month which left the home’s elderly resident with a serious head wound. Leslie William Charles Laurence Cooper was taken into custody late last week and appeared in Geraldton Magistrate’s Court on Friday morning. Police say Mr Cooper entered the Utakarra address between 6am and 7am on June 7, asking the victim’s son if he could use the bathroom. “Once inside, the allegation is he produced a machete and demanded money,” prosecutor Sgt Beau Jones told the court. It’s alleged the 82-year-old man awoke to find Mr Cooper going through his wardrobe before the accused man threatened him and demanded $200. An altercation allegedly ensued after the elderly man refused to provide the code for his safe, with the resident punched twice and then pushed over. “He lost balance and hit his head on the window sill, resulting in a large laceration which required 17 sutures,” Sgt Jones said. Mr Cooper was charged with aggravated home burglary and aggravated armed robbery, as well as an unrelated trespassing and stealing charge. Sgt Jones said the offender was allegedly wearing a face covering during the incident and the victim was unable to identify the perpetrator on a digiboard system. He said Mr Cooper allegedly identified himself to a witness during the trespassing for which he was charged, which occurred eight hours before the burglary, and was wearing a similar face covering. “Further inquiries are being conducted with a third party he’s alleged to have made full admissions about the offending to,” he said. In court, Mr Cooper said he “always” wore a mask because of COVID-19 and denied he was responsible for the incident. “I didn’t do the f…ing thing,” he said. He was remanded into custody by Magistrate Matthew Walton, who said despite being “not certain” about the strength of the case, these were “extremely serious allegations”. “I’ve got to say the only possibility of bail being considered is home detention,” he said. Mr Cooper will return to court on July 26 after a home detention report has been conducted to assess the suitability of his sister’s Spalding home.