The World is now a safer place.

[Gazoo]

yeah , ?? not sure about this bloke. I agree with safety first and Thorney, also about the 3yrs.
If he was that clean and only kept his gun from the oppresive regime ?? why did the police have a search warrant ??
I've stood up to the (waffen) ACPO for 30 yrs and at times been a royal pain to our constabulary (only when they were in the wrong ) but never found myself on the wrong end of a search warrant.
I object to lots of gun legislation (but thank god we have some of it as well) but keeping off ticket guns is not the way to be going on, and it makes the rest of us look bad.
We should pick and choose our causes and he aint one of them.
just my humble

[Chuck]

OTT as usual. he should have been a community paedo, wife beater or thief with a habit - they all seem to get get off much lighter!

Search warrant in relation to to other people - I wonder what that was about then?? Maybe that had some influence on the sentence??

[Fedaykin]

Isn't the minimum sentence 5 years for such a crime, if so he technically got off lightly with three years.

However much we disagree with the law in this matter he did break it. He certainly would of known the risk he was taking and as others have pointed out there were ways he could of kept it even in live firing form under 7.3.

It is rather convenient that an unrelated Police visit led to it being found apparently lying on a bed under a sheet....a bit too convenient IMHO. There are probably a few others out there who secreted away their pre-ban pistols albeit I would of thought if you are prepared to take the risk then you would be keeping it in a discrete place away from your place of residence.

I have heard some rumours out of the reenactor community that there are a few lets say "Hot items" being kept in the countryside and "Used" in remote places for personal entertainment. I remember having a fascinating conversation about fifteen years ago with a reenactor in respect of his "blank firing" Yugo built MG42 and what it would take to make it ermmmm "live firing"....not much actually.

In the end he took the risk and got caught out, I agree with Gazoo my sympathy only goes so far in this respect.

[Gazoo]

"It is rather convenient that an unrelated Police visit led to it being found apparently lying on a bed under a sheet....a bit too convenient IMHO"

Perhaps, Fedaykin, this was the first (and only) dedicated shooters crime stopper hotline success !!!

[Fedaykin]

That thought did cross my mind tangentially Gazoo, anyhow I think there was more intelligence involved with this particular collar and I wonder if he had some kind of falling out with anybody (possibly within the reenactment community).

I vaguely remember a UK documentary about guns during the mid 90's prior to Dunblane where they interviewed a collector of "Live AK derivatives", if my mind serves me correctly they blurred his face whilst he showed his (illegal) collection in his living room. I always wondered what became of him and if he was shopped to the Plod by the TV crew.

[BRYAN3]

A warrent relating to someone else=someone snitching.

[nigelc]

Sorry, but I can't feel sorry for the guy - an illegal gun is an illegal gun, no matter who has it. In fact, as a s.1 license holder he should know better.

[Fedaykin]

No need to apologise nigelc, as S.1 owners we know full well the responsibility we carry under the law. There were ways he could of kept the pistol (deac, 7.1 or 7.3 - become a section 5 cleared dealer) he instead decided to take the risk and when caught gave propaganda to the anti's!

He deserves no sympathy!

[Demonic69]

If it was just the gun then he's an idiot and deserved a slap. Holding ammunition for it then leaving it out of a safe! He's very lucky he got off so lightly and could probably do with his head examining.

[subvers10n]

The article suggests he owned the gun legally until the 1997 ban and then "just kept it".

How is that possible if the gun is registered and police know it's on his ticket? Is it a case of reporting it stolen but keeping hold of it or something like that...?