A man has been jailed after he imported weapons from China and was found with a taser in his car. Martin Thompson was stopped as he travelled through Ashington in August last year for suspected driving offences.
However, officers decided to search the 36-year-old's vehicle and discovered a taser in the centre console, a court was told. As a result, police further searched Thompson's address and seized his phone, which led them to finding evidence he'd been importing knives, knuckledusters and axes from China, prosecutors said.
Court appearance and guilty plea
Thompson, of Brentwood Avenue, in Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, appeared at South East Northumberland Magistrates' Court via video link from prison this week, having previously been jailed for two years for unrelated matters. He pleaded guilty to possession of an electrical incapacitation device and importing prohibited weapons to evade a prohibition.
Prosecutor Jade Houston said Thompson was stopped by police as he drove through Ashington on August 31 last year. Miss Houston continued: "At the time, the car was searched and a taser was located in the centre console. Following a further search of his property, the defendant's phone was seized and downloaded and it appeared he had been importing weapons from China. These included knuckledusters, knives and axes."
Defence and sentencing
The court heard that Thompson had eight offences on his record and was currently serving a two-year jail sentence in HMP Northumberland. Glenn Reardon, defending, said: "He had been importing the weapons from a UK-based company, who had been importing them from China. He didn't know that. If they had come from a UK-based company, he would simply have been charged with possession of an offensive weapon in a private place."
Magistrates jailed Thompson for 12 months and ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the taser.
