A father accused of breaking down the door of his ex-girlfriend's family's home told police he never entered the house, a court heard yesterday.

David Holmes denies three charges of putting a person in fear of violence or harassment, one of affray and one of possessing an offensive weapon.

Earlier in the trial, Oxford Crown Court heard Holmes was accused of going to Kirsty Bradbury's brother's house in Buttercup Square, Greater Leys, Oxford, in February, with several friends before trying to set dogs on the family inside.

The court heard he wanted to know where Miss Bradbury lived after becoming upset he was unable to see his two-year-old daughter.

In a police interview read to the jury yesterday, the 29-year-old, of Arnold's Way, Oxford, said he went to Miss Bradbury's brother Ryan East's house in a Metro with four other people.

He said: "I wanted to get a phone number for her so I took a pen and paper with me. I know all the people in the car will vouch for me.

"I knocked on the door and then I heard Ryan through the window. I said to him, 'Can I have Kirsty's number?'

"No one entered the house."

He added he heard a commotion before someone inside opened the door.

The trial continues.