£1000 fine for Aberdeen Airport stun gun
15.09.08
A stun gun bought for £5 on the streets of Bangkok has brought a man a £1000 fine after he landed at Aberdeen Airport carrying it in his luggage. Ian Dunn, of Inverallochy, Fraserburgh, had the gun in his hold luggage when he flew to Scotland from the Thai capital, via Amsterdam, on May 1.
Mr Dunn, 25, bought the gun as a toy, or a memento, and never intended to use it, Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard yesterday. He had previously admitted the offence.
Fiscal Depute Jonathan Kemp said Dunn’s luggage was searched as part of a routine check and not because he had attracted any suspicion. ‘The accused had immediately stated that he had this item in his bag. He bought it on a street corner for £5.’ He said the stun gun’s power was at the lower end of the scale and it would probably give someone a slight jolt rather than anything more significant.
Defence agent Neil McRobert said: ‘He certainly did not buy it with any intention of doing anything with it, but he had it and that is the offence.’ He added that Mr Dunn lived and worked in Australia – three weeks on, three weeks off – and had accommodation in Thailand for his time off.
Sheriff Kieran McLernan told him: ‘It is possible that you did buy this as a toy or as a memento. However, to bring it into this country is a serious mistake. There is a much greater sensitivity than there used to be to the possession of such toys and instruments.'
‘I will deal with this by way of a financial penalty, but I do require to express the disapproval of any kind of import such as the carrying of an offensive weapon, which is what that is.’
However, he said, there was clearly no malevolence and, judging by Mr Dunn’s clean record, there was no likelihood of him ever intending to use it. He was fined £1000.
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg it | Newsvine | NowPublic | Reddit
To book hotels aberdeen airport or parking aberdeen airport at the lowest price, click on these links to two great aberdeen airport car parking and aberdeen airport hotel price comparison websites.
