A MAN brandishing an imitation Colt 45 revolver on the Lancaster and Morecambe cycle track was arrested after a witness took a picture of him on his mobile phone.
Dean Stuart Marshall, 24, of Arnside Crescent in Morecambe, pleaded guilty to possession of an imitation firearm in a public place when he appeared at Lancaster Magistrates Court.
Tracy Yates, prosecuting, told the court that the incident occurred
around 10.40am on June 13. A witness saw Marshall shouting at a cyclist and took a picture of him on his mobile phone.
Marshall then said to the man, 'Hello baldy' and starting waving his arm around.
The man thought Marshall was holding a dog lead but it was only when he checked the picture he had taken shortly afterward, that he saw it was a firearm.
Police were called and found Marshall on the cycle track, without the gun. He was then arrested and the gun was subsequently recovered from the cycle track.
Marshall told police he had found the gun at a house on the promenade and had kept it, but didn't know why. He said he got bored with it and threw it away.
He wasn't drunk, just hung over.
Defending, John Halewood Dodd said the gun was clearly not a real firearm and Marshall didn't think he'd done anything wrong. He said: "He was intoxicated and didn't think of the consequences of what he was doing."
Magistrates ordered Marshall to pay £60 court costs and to complete a 12-month community order with 100 hours unpaid work. They also ordered forfeiture and destruction of the firearm.
