A MAN accused of holding up a hotel at Cardiff in the early hours of Tuesday morning has been refused bail in Newcastle Bail Court.
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Jade Allan Thompson, 32, of Wallsend, was arrested by Strike Force Hawksview detectives on Tuesday night and charged with five offences, including armed robbery, driving while disqualified and possession of a prohibited weapon.
Mr Thompson was refused bail and will next appear in Toronto Local Court on Tuesday.
Police say two masked men - one armed with a handgun and the other holding a meat cleaver - burst into a licensed premises on Main Road at Cardiff about 12.20am on Tuesday.
The pair threatened two employees, a man and woman, before taking cash and fleeing in a blue Ford Falcon Sedan.
The investigation was referred to detectives from the State Crime Command's Robbery and Serious Crime Squad who formed Strike Force Hawksview and raided three properties at Wallsend, Maryland and New Lambton on Tuesday night.
During further searches, investigators say they seized a blue Ford Falcon, a motorcycle, ammunition, clothing, a firearm part, a small quantity of methylamphetamine, and other items relevant to the investigation.
Mr Thompson was arrested at the house at Wallsend and later charged with armed robbery, detectives alleging he was one of the two men who stormed the Cardiff hotel. Further arrests are expected.