A 71-year-old woman feared she would be killed when two masked men broke into the home she shared with her husband in northeast Calgary, punched her in the face repeatedly and duct-taped her to a chair, a court heard Monday.

"The beating was so hard," said Nicoletta Memme, who is now 74 years old. "I thought I'm going to die."

Cory Eide, 45, is on trial before judge alone, charged with aggravated assault, unlawful confinement, and breaking and entering.

Ni﻿coletta Memme​ and her husband, Guiseppe, woke up to the sound of someone breaking in through the back door of their home in the community of Thorncliffe on Dec. 18, 2015.

Prosecutor Adam May told Justice Willie deWit the only issue at trial will be identity — whether or not it was Eide in the the couple's home on the night of the attack.

Eide's DNA was found on the inside of a latex glove that was left at the scene with Nicoletta Memme​'s blood on the outside, court heard Monday.

Masked men threatened grandchildren

Court heard the couple was woken up that day around 5 a.m.

"I heard this big, big noise and then I run to the kitchen," Nicoletta said, speaking with an Italian accent.

She said she turned the lights on to find two masked men, dressed all in black, using a crowbar to get into her home through the back door.

One of the men knew the names of the Memmes' grandchildren and that they lived next door. He threatened to harm them if the couple didn't keep quiet.

Demanded money while punching senior

The beating began in the kitchen, Nicoletta said.

"He decide to punch me but not just once," she said.

She described being punched in the head, nose, jaw and eye.

The attackers demanded money from the couple before taking them to the basement, where the two seniors were duct-taped to chairs.

"They just keep saying, 'Where's the money, where's the money,'" Nicoletta told court.

Finally they found something.

"They took my beautiful, big jewelry box full of good stuff."

Inside was her wedding ring, anniversary ring and other precious jewelry.



The men left with the jewelry box.

Accused dating their son's ex-wife

Nicoletta was in hospital for three weeks and had several surgeries. She suffered a concussion and needed facial reconstructive surgery to repair a shattered eye socket.

Investigators seized a crowbar and the glove found in the basement.

Eide, who is from Clive, Alta., was connected to the family because he was dating their son's ex-wife.

At the time of the attack, Eide was staying at a hotel six kilometres from the Memmes' home. He was charged about a year after the attack.

Const. Sean Call, who is with the Calgary Police Service's forensic crime scene unit, described a bloody scene in the basement of the Memmes' house when he arrived to collect evidence.

In cross-examination, Eide's defence lawyer, Robert Wachowich, reminded Nicoletta she initially told police she believed the intruders were in their twenties. Wachowich also said she never saw their faces.

Guiseppe Memme testified Monday afternoon through an Italian interpreter. He told the court he and his wife had lived in their home for 45 years.

On the morning of the robbery, Guiseppe said, the intruders first unplugged the couple's landline before beginning their attack.

He said he was punched by one of the masked men, who demanded to know where he kept his money.

"It's in the bank," Guiseppe told the robber.

The trial continues Tuesday.