Collie man Paul Terrence Edward McGuire accused of attacking campers with machete fronts court

A man who had been living out of his caravan at a Collie campsite for the past 17 years has fronted court accused of swinging a machete at a complete stranger while they were camping. Paul Terrence Edward McGuire appeared in Bunbury Magistrate’s Court on Monday where he faces a grievous bodily harm charge. Keeping his head down while he sat in the dock, Mr McGuire only spoke to confirm he understood the charge before him. It was alleged Mr McGuire was living out of his caravan at the Wellington Damn campsite when he joined a group of campers, which included the victim, and consumed alcohol with them. However, when Mr McGuire became upset and the group’s dog started growling at him, the group asked him to leave. Although Mr McGuire complied with their request, police say he returned on a quad bike 20 minutes later, armed with a machete. The victim was said to have used a metal street sign as a shield in an effort to protect himself and his friends as he tried to disarm Mr McGuire in the confrontation. It was alleged that in the scuffle, Mr McGuire hit the victim with the machete, causing a 5cm laceration to his forearm and further cut to his thumb. Police say Mr McGuire was eventually disarmed by another camper who then threw the machete to get it away but it fell into the dam, prompting police to conduct a search for it. The victim was taken to Collie Hospital where he received stitches for the cut on his forehead before being transferred to another hospital for surgery. Despite concerns from police about Mr McGuire’s itinerant lifestyle, Magistrate Benjamin Tyers granted him bail with a number of strict conditions including protective conditions for the victim, a $5000 surety and regular reporting to police. Mr McGuire was also barred from consuming alcohol or leaving the state. He is next due to appear in Collie Magistrate’s Court on November 17.