An Illawarra man will remain behind bars over Christmas accused of bashing his girlfriend in front of their one-year-old son.
Police arrived at the Middlesex Street house just after 2pm on Wednesday following reports of an ongoing domestic incident.
They allegedly heard yelling and a muffled scream from inside the premises, a small child crying and a male voice say "stay here, I'm gonna go bash mummy again".
Officers forced their way into the house to discover the victim with a number of grazes to her nose and lip area and a chunk of hair missing, court documents said.
The woman told police she and her partner, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had just returned from a friend's house when they got into an argument, allegedly prompting the man to grab the woman by the hair and drag her onto the kitchen floor.
He then allegedly held his hand over the woman's face and nose, cutting off her breathing, before biting her on the nose.
The woman told police she attempted to yell out during the ordeal and tried to reach for her phone a number of times.
Meantime, police were alerted to the incident via an anonymous phone call. They arrived a few minutes later to hear the couple's youngest child crying.
In court on Thursday, the man denied telling his boy he was going to "bash mummy", and while admitting there had been a "scuffle", claimed he had been acting in self defence.
The man is also accused of resisting police efforts to arrest him at the house, allegedly thrashing about and kicking officers as they tried to handcuff him.
He was eventually subdued via capsicum spray.
Defence lawyer Danny Lagopodis said the man would argue police did not treat him in an "appropriate fashion" when they arrested him.
The safety of the community and the victim is paramount
Magistrate Susan McGowan
Magistrate Susan McGowan labelled the allegations against the man "alarming" and "distressing".
"The safety of the community and the victim is paramount," she said in refusing the man bail.
The case was adjourned to January 17.