A man who threatened to use a shotgun if police came to his home has been handed a suspended sentence.

Sean Peter Ross Maunders had to be restrained using Pava spray after armed response officers went to his home.

After the 30-year-old pleaded guilty to resisting arrest and sending menacing messages, High Bailiff Rachael Braidwood sentenced him to five months custody, suspended for two years.

He was also given a two-year suspended sentence supervision order.

The High Bailiff told Maunders, who was already subject to a previous suspended sentence: ‘This is very much your final chance.’

We previously reported that, on August 16 at 4.30pm, Maunders called police headquarters and said he had a shotgun.

He said he wouldn’t hesitate to use it if officers came to his address.

Maunders then ended the call so police called him back.

He again said he had a gun and added: ‘There would be a body in the f****** morning.’

Armed officers went to his home at Quine’s Corner in Douglas, but when they arrived Maunders kicked out at them, which resulted in him being Pava sprayed, handcuffed and put in leg restraints.

No gun was found.

He was interviewed later and admitted that his call would have caused officers to feel threatened.

In May 2022, Maunders was given a suspended sentence of 15 months’ custody, suspended for two years, for five counts of assaulting a police officer.

Those offences were committed during two separate incidents, three days apart, when officers were performing welfare checks at his home.

Defence advocate Stephen Wood said: ‘It’s fair to say we are at the shores of the Rubicon now.

‘The question for your worship is whether the Rubicon is crossed.’

Mr Wood said that his client was a man who has struggled with his mental health and has been receiving assistance.

The advocate said that, when Maunders had referred to a body in the morning, he had been referring to himself rather than making a threat towards the police.

‘The references were to taking his own life with a fictitious shotgun that never existed,’ said Mr Wood.

The advocate went on to say that Maunders suffered from various issues and his response to difficulties was to sometimes consume alcohol, then call the police.

He continued: ‘We are not dealing with any injuries.

‘Mr Maunders has done well over the last year and has achieved that with help from probation services.

‘Probation wrote positively about him in terms of his engagement.

‘He tells me he has self-referred to Motiv8 as a result of the incident.’

Mr Wood went on to ask for credit to be given for his client’s guilty plea and said that Maunders was a ‘damaged man with difficulties’, and that custody would likely mean the loss of his home.

High Bailiff Ms Braidwood told Maunders: ‘Your offending seems to be borne out of your poor response to crises and you turn to alcohol.

‘Your contact with Motiv8 is encouraging.  I will take the somewhat exceptional step of not activating the suspended sentence.

‘The effect of custody upon you would be incredibly significant.’

The High Bailiff sentenced the defendant to three months’ custody for the telecommunications offence and two months for resisting arrest, to run consecutively, but both were suspended for two years.