A 20-year old offender has avoided jail time after pleading guilty to a Mount Clear home invasion where a man was hacked with a machete.
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Lachlan Dzesa, 20, fronted the County Court in Ballarat on Thursday after an earlier plea was entered on February 18.
Dzesa faced charges of home invasion, intentionally causing injury, theft and trafficking and possessing a drug of dependence.
It comes after he and an accomplice confronted and attacked a man who was alone at his Mount Clear home at about midnight on April 15, 2023.
The court heard Dzesa and the accomplice forced their way into the property and began questioning the man about an argument on social media with Dzesa.
Dzesa's accomplice to the man he would "put a bullet in his head", after which Dzesa fetched a serrated and curved machete for his accomplice to use.
The accomplice then began striking the man with all sides of the machete.
During the assault, the man fell onto a couch, and grabbed the blade with his left hand, cutting into his skin.
The man would later tell police he was hit an estimated "40 times" with the machete.
He lost consciousness on the couch, after which Dzesa and his accomplice splashed his face with water to wake him up and stole a gold chain he was wearing.
The pair then carried the man to the shower to "wash the fingerprints" off of him. The pair also threatened to get the Comancheros motorcycle gang onto him if he went to the police.
The man was left bloody in his home, and was later taken to the Ballarat Base Hospital for treatment.
He received a hematoma to the skull and the scalp and suffered multiple defence wounds on his arms fighting off the machete attack.
Dzesa was arrested on April 19, 2023, and his accomplice remains at large.
At Thursday's hearing, Judge Kellie Blair told Dzesa he would be avoiding a prison sentence.
Factors acting in Dzesa's favour included his age - the sentencing hearing on Thursday happened two days before Dzesa would turn 21 and be ineligible for youth offender sentencing considerations.
Judge Blair also spoke on evidence provided from a neuropsychologist who assessed Dzesa and found him to have ADHD, as well as a borderline IQ score.
While not low enough to be considered an intellectual disability, Judge Blair said Dzesa's low intellectual functioning meant he had a reduced capacity to understand others and make mature choices when dealing with conflict.
The court also heard since his release from custody Dzesa had been diligently attending all of his youth justice appointments, and had a strong work history on bail.
He was also said to have had a secondary role in the home invasion, only egging on his accomplice, who carried out the machete attack.
Dzesa was put on a two year community corrections order and required to complete 150 hours of community work.
"To remove you from the community would be a retrograde step and would not be in anyone's interest," Judge Blair said.
"I hope you won't ever offend again, and I am quite hopeful that you won't.
"You have never been in trouble before, and you have done so incredibly well on youth justice bail... I am giving you this opportunity, and I hope that you are able to do this order."
