Two men jailed after stun guns uncovered when they landed at Birmingham Airport
Two men have been jailed after they brought stun guns disguised as torches into the UK from Turkey.
On September 15, 2015, 22-year-old Brett Anslow, 22, and Michael Chand, 49, were passengers on a flight from Turkey which landed at Birmingham International Airport.
Once they had cleared immigration, they collected their luggage and headed through the customs’ green channel when they were detained by a customs officer.
On search of their belongings, officers recovered a total of six stun guns, which were disguised as torches, six knuckledusters and a friction lock baton.
The two men were later charged with possessing disguised firearms and at Birmingham Crown Court Anslow, of Four Winds Road, Dudley, was sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment and Chand, of Old Bridge Walk, to 18 months imprisonment.
Jason Corden-Bowen, district crown prosecutor from West Midlands Crown Prosecution Service, said: “When detained at the airport, the two defendants claimed that they were unaware that bringing such prohibited items into the UK was illegal. Ignorance of the law is no defence.
“Disguised firearms are dangerous weapons and possession of them is regarded with the utmost gravity.
“We hope that today’s convictions send out a clear message that bringing items like these into this country is illegal and those caught will be robustly prosecuted.”
