A Fort Dodge man faces two charges after Fort Dodge Police say he assaulted a man with a machete earlier this month.

Criminal complaints said Bendjy Joseph, 35, concealed a machete in his pants before fighting with the victim on the afternoon of Jan. 2 in a parking lot at 1724 Fifth Ave. S. Police said he then proceeded to pull the machete out and strike the victim in the head, causing injury. The extent of the victim’s injuries was unspecified.

Information filed by Joseph’s parole officer on Friday said that Joseph claimed the weapon was “an imitation of a machete.”

Joseph is charged with going armed with intent, a class D felony, and assault while displaying a dangerous weapon, an aggravated misdemeanor.

The defendant is currently on parole for a second-degree burglary conviction stemming from an October 2017 incident in Sac City. There, criminal complaints said Joseph kicked in an air conditioning unit and entered an apartment through a window, where he assaulted an occupant. In the process, he was shot twice by the victim.

In November 2018, he was sentenced to five years of probation for that offense with a suspended prison sentence of up to 10 years. Joseph’s probation was revoked in May 2019. Information filed on him with the Iowa Department of Corrections indicates his indeterminate prison term ended in May 2020, when he was placed on parole.

The defendant is being held in the Webster County Jail without bond.