A Western Australian man has pleaded guilty to assaulting police at the NSW-Victorian border south of Eden - "even though that's not the truth" he told the court.
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It was a tumultuous day in the Bega Local Court when Reynolds Dube faced charges relating to his three attempts to cross into NSW with a permit not deemed valid.
Representing himself and appearing over audio visual link while being held in custody, the 27-year-old from Alkimos, a coastal suburb of Perth, originally pleaded his innocence when the hearing began on Tuesday, September 8.
However, he later pleaded guilty to two charges of not complying with a COVID-19 related direction, as well as charges of using offensive language near a public place or school, and assaulting and resisting an officer.
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Prior to the plea change, Dube disputed the police's accusations he had resisted arrest, saying at 140kg he was a "big guy".
"Any person who tries to take me down, it's going to feel like I'm resisting," he told the courtroom.
Magistrate Doug Dick said it appeared Dube had attempted to cross the state border three times with a permit police deemed to be invalid.
He said it seemed to be a "very strong case".
Restrictions are in place at the border in an attempt to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and a permit is required to cross.
The court heard Dube had tried to cross the border at Albury on September 1, then again twice in one night on September 7 at Rockton then the Princes Hwy at Timbillica, south of Eden, without a valid permit each time.
In court documents police stated after Dube was refused entry at Timbillica and would not return to Victoria he became aggressive and wrestled with several police officers.
In the courtroom, even after Dube changed his pleas to guilty he continued to claim he did not assault a police officer or resist arrest, saying he chose "to plead guilty even though that's not the truth".
After he changed his pleas, police prosecutor Sergeant Liza Brown told the court it appeared he was on bail in Western Australia.
Dube has been refused bail and the matter was adjourned for sentencing to September 15.
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