A man has been charged over the armed and attempted armed robberies of two hotels in the Sutherland Shire yesterday morning.

About 1am, Sunday 12 May 2013, a man attended a hotel on the Princes Highway, Heathcote while allegedly armed with a sledge hammer and a pistol.

He smashed entry to closed hotel via the front door before rummaging through a number of rooms and leaving the premises.

About fifteen minutes later the same man allegedly used a sledge hammer to smash through the glass doors of a hotel on Station Street, Engadine.

Once inside, he allegedly approached an employee, threatened him with a pistol and demanded money from the safe.

The employee complied with the request, however, the man was overpowered by staff during the incident and detained.

Police from Sutherland Local Area Command were called to the hotel where they arrested the man before taking him to St George Hospital for treatment of minor injuries.

The 27-year-old man from Kirrawee was treated by doctors and later taken to Sutherland Police Station where he was charged with a total of ten offences.

The charges include robbery whilst armed with a dangerous weapon, special aggravated break and enter with intent armed with a dangerous weapon, wound person with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, possess unregistered firearm, possess unauthorised pistol and common assault.

The man has been refused bail to appear in Sutherland Local Court today (Monday 13 May 2013).