A 37-year-old Llanbedr man assaulted his 78-year-old frail father and then pushed his sister over at the family home at Penarth Farm, magistrates at Dolgellau heard.

Christopher Crosby, 37, now living at 1 Bristol House, Smithfield Street, Dolgellau, pleaded guilty to assaulting his father Vincent Benedict Crosby by beating and guilty to a similar charge of assaulting his sister Juliet Treliving on 4 May.

Crosby also pleaded guilty damaging the door of a police car when being arrested and to damaging a light at the family farm.

Jim Nearey, prosecuting, said that the defendant was a cannabis user and had mental health and anger management problems.

On 4 May the defendant swore at his father and pushed him aggressively into a chair.

The father was afraid of his son as he was frail and had to use a walking stick, while his son was 37 years old and was 6ft 4 inches tall.

The court heard that the defendant had got up early and was in a bad mood and aggressive and banging on the table.

The father was worried that he would be seriously assaulted and the police were called. The sister had tried to calm the defendant down and she was pushed aggressively, the court heard.

When the police arrived the defendant became aggressive towards the police and kicked out at the police vehicle.

The court heard that the family were distraught because the mother had been diagnosed with cancer.

In a victim statement the father said that he did not feel safe at the family home and the father and family felt that the defendant needed help.

They asked for a restraining order for a short time to see if the defendant’s mental health problems would get better.

Defence solicitor, Sion Hughes, said that his client was extremely remorseful and that there would not be any objections to a short restraining order.

The court probation officer endorsed that the defendant was remorseful and that everyone accepted that the intervention of the probation service and mental health teams would be beneficial, together with rehabilitation activities to combat his offending behaviour.

Court chairman Sarah Fossket said that the magistrates had listened carefully to what had been said by the probation service, the prosecution and defence and gave the defendant full credit for the guilty pleas to two assaults and two criminal damage charges.

Crosby was placed on a 12-month community order to attend 25 sessions of rehabilitation for the assault on Mr Crosby senior and £40 fine for the assault on his sister. No separate penalty was imposed for the two criminal damage charges.

The court chairman imposed a six-month restraining order and for the defendant not to contact his father or sister other than through a third party.

The defendant was also ordered not to go within 500 metres of Penarth farm, Llanbedr, for six months.