Hours before Robert Xie allegedly murdered five members of the Lin family he shared a dinner with three of them, a court has heard.

Lian Bin “Robert” Xie, 50, is accused of murdering his brother-in-law Min “Norman” Lin, 45, Mr Lin’s wife, Yun “Lily” Li Lin, 44 and their sons Henry, 12, and Terry, 9 in the early hours of July 18, 2009 in their home in Sydney’s northwest.

He is also alleged to have killed Lily’s sister, Yun Bin “Irene” Yin, 39.

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Xie, who has pleaded not guilty, is facing a retrial after his trial earlier this year was cut short.

In opening the crown case for a second time at the Supreme Court on Tuesday, prosecutor Mark Tedeschi QC said Xie was “motivated by intense bitterness and hatred” when he went to their North Epping home and turned off the electricity.

Walking around silently, it is alleged he went into Min and Lily’s bedroom first and murdered them in their beds. He then killed the third adult, Irene.

All three adults had “very substantial deformation of their faces”, with the assault upon them occurring while they were asleep or just waking up, Mr Tedeschi told the jury.

Having killed those that represented the largest “threat”, the crown says Xie then went into the bedroom the two boys Henry and Terry shared.

Here a struggle did break out.

“The boys were not in their beds … from the way the room was found there had been a furious struggle.”

Mr Tedeschi said the evidence would establish that there was “one primary weapon used to subdue and cause the most horrendous injuries to the five victims”.

This weapon, he alleged was “hammer-like” and involved a rope being tied around the wrist of the assailant.

“Not a single solitary neighbour heard anything to the horror that went on.”

Hours before Xie allegedly carried out the murders, the court heard he had dinner at the Lin grandparents’ home with his wife Kathy and her newsagent brother Min.

The two boys Henry and Terry were also at dinner. The trial continues.