Prison for Craigavon man with loaded gun

Craigavon Crown Court Judge Gemma Loughran spoke as she handed a three-year custodial term to Gary Scullion (21).

Scullion, from Deans Grange in Craigavon, pleaded guilty to having a loaded sawn-off shotgun and cartridges in suspicious circumstances on September 12 last year. He also admitted having a machete and a knife.

Prosecution lawyer Ian Tannahill told the court, sitting in Belfast, that a police sniffer dog indicated for Scullion’s car to be searched, so it was seized.

Officers found the items behind the passenger side airbag.

Defence lawyer Conor O’Kane said Scullion had felt “under pressure” when certain elements connected to the drugs trade asked him to hide the gun.

He will serve half his sentence in custody and half on licence.