Stephen Orr, who shot a man in the neck with a bolt gun after meeting him online and fired a rifle at him as he ran in fear after a sexual encounter at a Hunter property, will be sentenced later this year.
Orr, 58, pleaded guilty in Newcastle District Court on Monday to one count each of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, detaining a person for advantage, firing a rifle with disregard to safety and possessing a prohibited firearm.
According to a statement of agreed facts tendered to the court, Orr first came into contact with his victim - a man aged 67 at the time, on a website in July, 2017, and the pair spent about a fortnight exchanging messages before agreeing to meet at a Pokolbin pub on the afternoon of August 13.
Orr arrived at the venue and met the 67-year-old, who got into the car with him.
Orr told the man he was taking him to a friend's house because his neighbours were too noisy - and that there would be a group of other people at the property waiting. He warned the man there was no mobile phone service where they were going and asked if he had told anyone of his plans that afternoon - the reply was: no.
He stopped at a property about 20 minutes drive from the pub. There was no-one else at the scene but Orr read the man a fake note saying there were three others who had gone for a walk and would return.
Orr and the 67-year-old then had consensual sex, which involved the older man's hands being bound and eyes covered. Afterwards, while the man was still tied and blindfolded, Orr pressed a bolt gun - a device used to kill cattle - onto his neck and shot him, damaging two vertebrae and knocking him out for a short time.
When the man woke, Orr threatened him with a rifle and told the 67-year-old he had shot him in the neck with the bolt to "get you to relax".
The 67-year-old managed to flee the scene and Orr fired a shot from the rifle at him as he ran. The older man flagged down a passing car and was taken to hospital.
Orr will be sentenced on June 18.
