A 77-year-old Castletown man has been fined £1,200 after admitting failing to keep an air rifle and shotgun ammunition secure in a gun safe.

Robert Simon Douglas Riggall had previously denied the two offences of failing to comply with his weapons certificate, but on Tuesday, May 6, changed his pleas to guilty.

He also changed a previous not guilty plea to having a defective tyre, to a guilty plea, and was fined an additional £200 for that by Deputy High Bailiff Rachael Braidwood.

Other charges, of failing to stop after an accident, possessing a firearm, namely a .22 rifle, and a further count of failing to comply with a weapons certificate, all of which Riggall had also denied, were dismissed after the prosecution offered no evidence.

Prosecuting advocate Barry Swain told the court that the offences were committed on September 2 last year.

They arose after Riggall was arrested for drink-driving, after his Mercedes C180 hit a Nissan Duke at Malew Road in Castletown, causing it to roll onto its side and trap the driver inside.

We previously reported that the defendant admitted that offence and was fined £1,300 and given a two-year driving ban, during a court appearance in March.

The denied offences had been due for a pre-trial review, but Riggall’s change of pleas mean that is no longer necessary.

Mr Swain said that, after the drink-driving incident, police went to the defendant’s home, at Malew Road, and found an air rifle leaning against a wall, instead of inside a safe, as well as a box containing shotgun cartridges on top of the safe.

A vehicle examiner had deemed that the Mercedes had a defective tyre, which involved a cut to it, rather than wear and tear, and that it had been unroadworthy prior to the accident.

Defence advocate Paul Rodgers said that his client had reached 77 years of age without any convictions, as the September 2 incident had been his first.

Mr Rodgers said that Riggall had served in the military, had worked in the financial sector, been involved in restoring buildings, and helped at Malew Church.

The advocate said that the offences were ‘very much a blip’, and that the defendant had held a firearms licence for decades without any issues.

Mr Rodgers said that the air rifle was a historic relic, but it was accepted that, with the correct modifications, it was capable of use.

He said that the rifle and ammunition were found in an office which was protected by a CCTV camera, so he said the risk of anyone else coming into possession of them was very limited.

Mr Rodgers went on to say that the police had sought to revoke Riggall’s weapons certificate, and although he had the right to appeal, he had not done so, so all weapons were now in the possession of the police.

Deputy High Bailiff Rachael Braidwood also ordered the defendant to pay £125 prosecution costs.

He agreed to pay all amounts within seven days.