AN argument between strangers about how one of them had parked their car outside a Shortland kebab stand is what triggered Matthew Mark Baker to race home and grab a tomahawk before erratically driving back to the scene, running a red light and then chasing the man around with the weapon raised above his head.
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And when police told Baker that witnesses who watched the alarming confrontation unfold were concerned he might kill the other man, he made a startling admission.
"If I hadn't of seen the [CCTV camera] I probably would have," Baker said.
Baker, 39, who lives in Coughlin Street, Birmingham Gardens, about 400 metres from the Sandgate Road service station where the confrontation took place, appeared in Newcastle Local Court this week and pleaded guilty to being armed with intent to commit an indictable offence.
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He applied for bail, but it was refused with Magistrate Robert Stone finding he posed an unacceptable risk of endangering the community if released. He will be sentenced next month.
Baker went to a small kebab stand attached to the Metro service station on Sandgate Road about 7.35pm on September 7 to order food. At some point he became involved in a heated argument with a stranger about how Baker had parked his car.
Baker pushed the other man and he punched Baker in the face. Baker then got back into his car and drove home where he grabbed a tomahawk and drove back to the service station. A witness who followed Baker watched as he drove erratically and ran a red light on Sandgate Road.
When he got back to the service station, Baker stopped near where the stranger was standing and got out armed with the tomahawk and began chasing him around. The other man ran across the road and Baker gave chase with the tomahawk raised above his head.
The other man sought refuge in the Shortland Hotel bottle shop and Baker eventually got back into his car and drove home.
The entire incident was witnessed by a number of people, who called police and wrote down Baker's number plate, as well as being captured on CCTV.
"The actions of [Baker] demonstrate a potential for serious or life threatening injury to occur," police said after watching the CCTV footage. "His actions are clearly intimidating to any persons nearby at the time of the offence."
Police went to Baker's house about 9.30pm and he made admissions to driving the car and being responsible for threatening the stranger with the tomahawk.
He also made the comment about "probably killing" the man had it not been for the CCTV cameras in the area. He was arrested and police seized the tomahawk.
Now intoxicated, Baker was uncooperative with police and urinated in a cell.
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