Pistol man sentenced to unpaid work

A MAN who inherited a revolver as a family memento has been spared the minimum five-year jail sentence for illegally possessing a gun.

Richard Sandison, 51, was a schoolboy when he was given the Belgian weapon, which had belonged to his grandfather who served with distinction during the First World War.

It was seized by police after officers attended his home on an unrelated matter in June 2011.

Sandison, of Uphall, West Lothian, faced at least five years in prison after admitting possessing the 125-year-old prohibited weapon without authority at his former home in Bathgate.

However, judge Lady Scott told Sandison at the High Court in Edinburgh yesterday that she had found there were “exceptional circumstances” and ordered him to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.