An intruder shot in the head at Miranda Kerr’s Malibu home by a security guard was a Brisbane man who wanted to deliver a letter to the Australian supermodel, Los Angeles prosecutors allege.

Shaun Anthony Haywood, 29, faces life in prison if convicted in the US courts with charges including attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated mayhem.

He entered not guilty pleas when he appeared in the LA Superior Court on Tuesday.

“Haywood allegedly broke into the Malibu property in an effort to deliver a letter,” prosecutors alleged.

“When confronted by a security guard, the defendant is charged with grabbing the guard’s knife and slashing his face”.

The guard defended himself by shooting Haywood in the October 14 incident.

Kerr and her five-year-old son Flynn were not home at the time.

Haywood remains in custody, with bail set at $US1 million ($A1.3 million).

A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for November 7.

A neighbour said he and some workmen on his property saw the fight between Haywood and the security guard.

One of the workers scaled Kerr’s large front fence to help the injured security guard.

“The man, after he was shot, still held the knife and was going after the security man so my guy kicked the knife out of the perpetrator’s hands,” the neighbour, who only gave his name as Jerry, told LA TV station CBS2 on October 14.

Kerr, 33, bought the four bedroom, 3.5 bedroom 1960s ranch-style home for $US2.15 million ($A2.8 million) following her divorce from British actor and Lord of the Rings star Orlando Bloom.

Kerr, who recently became engaged to 26-year-old Snapchat billionaire Evan Spiegel, has been spending time at the internet mogul’s $US12 million ($A15.7 million), seven-bedroom home in the elite LA suburb of Brentwood.

In interviews Kerr has raved about the Malibu home, which has views over the Pacific Ocean and a vegetable garden.

– AAP