Air passenger in bid to smuggle stun gun jailed for five years

Daniel Henry West, from Grimsby, was stopped by Border Force officers in July 2012 after he arrived at Doncaster’s Robin Hood Airport on a flight from Dalaman, Turkey.

The officers discovered the device and its charger inside a box in West’s luggage.

Forensic tests confirmed it to be a fully working stun gun.

West, of Fallowfield Road in Scartho, pleaded guilty to possessing the stun gun, but claimed he thought the device was a toy telephone which he bought for 20 Turkish lira – around £7 – as a present for his one-year-old daughter.

But at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, August 9, Judge Jacqueline Davies said she did not believe West’s explanation.

She sentenced the 23-year-old to five years in prison for possession of a disguised firearm, contrary to the Firearms Act 1968.

Following the case Malcolm Bragg, from the Home Office’s shadow border policing command, said: “This case sends out a clear message to those thinking about bringing banned weapons here.

“Our officers will seize these items and you will face prosecution and imprisonment.

“This type of device is incredibly dangerous and has no place on our streets.

“Border Force officers work around the clock at ports and airports to keep these kinds of weapons and other illegal items like drugs and counterfeit goods, out of the UK.”