A MAN bought a stun gun to spur police into action against another man - who he said had been targeting him for years, a court heard.

Armed police acted quickly to seize Nigel Robin Brown's illegal weapon, York Crown Court was told.

But he didn’t appear before a court for more than a year.

“That is far too long,” said the Recorder of York, Judge Sean Morris.

He suspended the eight-month sentence for 12 months on condition Brown does a six-month alcohol treatment programme and 30 days’ rehabilitative activities.

Brown, 50, of Riverside Close, Barlby, appeared before York Magistrates' Court on October 30, 2020, and pleaded guilty to having an electric weapon capable of incapacitating someone.

He had previously been cautioned for having an air weapon.

He was committed to York Crown Court for sentence.

Nicoleta Alistari, prosecuting, said Brown rang police on July 23, 2019, to tell them them their response to his complaint about the man causing him problems wasn’t satisfactory.

He said: “I have got a Taser and I am willing to use it.”

Police went urgently to his house, he told them where the weapon was, and they confiscated it.

He said he had bought it from a “man from York” who had demonstrated it working to him.

Brown claimed he didn’t know that it was an illegal weapon.

His barrister Caroline Abraham said the second man had been “targeting him for many years and trying to obtain money".

He had told the police about the other man.

“Out of frustrated and misguided thinking his actions followed,” she said.

He wanted to tackle his very long standing alcohol addiction, the court heard.

Judge Morris said of the stun gun: “He didn’t intend to use it and in fact he got on the phone to the police in the hope of spurring them into action."

He warned Brown that but for the police delay he would have gone to jail.