Christopher Townsend, aged 24, has pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of an imitation firearm, and one count each of importing imitation firearms and possessing extreme pornographic images. Following reports of him shooting at nearby cars from a window of his home in Little Eaton, Derbyshire, police searched the property and recovered two Italian-made imitation revolvers (imported from Spain), 50 live blank cartridges, cannabis and a laptop containing 58 extreme pornographic images. The court heard that the weapons would have been classed as lethal if an ammunition of a type different to that seized was used. After hearing that Townsend lived with “a mental health condition akin to schizophrenia” and that his doctor claimed that “custody would have a very negative impact” on him, the recorder sentenced Townsend to a three-year community order with a rehabilitation requirement. He also ordered the imitation weapons, cartridges and the laptop to be destroyed, while allowing the charge for importing the firearms to lie on file.
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