Terrifying moment father-of-three holds a knife to the neck of a man playing pokies before stabbing him in the head in attack he says he can’t remember because he was on drugs
- Aaron Lovett stabbed a pokies player three times in the head and once in arm
- The father-of-three, 38, was filmed sitting next to the man before attacking him
- Patrons came to the victim’s aide before a security guard confronted Lovett
- He was sentenced to a maximum of two years in jail with minimum of 18 months
A father-of-three was high on ice and heroin when he stabbed a pokies player in the head in a violent attack captured by security cameras.
Aaron Lovett, 38, stabbed another man in the pokies section of Preston Hotel in Melbourne‘s north at 4.43am on December 22, 2019.
He sat next to his victim at a pokies machine for two minutes before he pulled a Stanley knife out, a court heard.
The drugged up attacker stood behind the man with his left hand on his shoulder and his right hand holding a knife to his throat, video footage shows.
Lovett (right) held a Stanley knife to the man’s (left) throat, while he sat at a pokie machine
Lovett pleaded guilty to multiple charges including intentionally causing injury and was sentenced to a maximum of two years in jail in the County Court of Victoria last week, according to the Preston Leader.
It was heard the victim tried to push Lovett away and a scuffle ensued, during which time Lovett stabbed him three times in the head and once in the arm.
Other pokies players then came to the man’s aide on the other side of the room before Lovett was followed over, the court heard.
The court heard Lovett left the hotel when a security guard came over to intervene.
The victim suffered three stab wounds to the head and one to the arm, which were treated with stitches at the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
Aaron Lovett (left in blue), 38, sat next to his victim (right in black) at a pokies machine for two minutes before he attacked him at Preston Hotel in Melbourne’s north at 4.43am on December 22, 2019
The father-of-three stabbed the man three times in the head and once in the arm while other patrons played on the pokie machines (pictured, top right)
Lovett could reportedly not remember any of the incident because he was under the influence of heroin and ice during the attack and had not planned the attack, the court heard.
But the prosecution argued the attack was premeditated since Lovett was carrying a knife on his person.
It was also heard Lovett, 38, has a brain injury and had an abusive and traumatic childhood, which included starting to use heroin at just 12 years old.
The father-of-three had previously served time in prison multiple times for crimes such as armed robbery and assault with a weapon.
He pleaded guilty to numerous charges and was sentenced to a minimum of 18 months in jail with a maximum sentence of two years.
The victim (pictured centre in shorts) was helped by other patrons while a security guard confronted Lovett (far left in blue cap)
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