Guilty: ‘Toy pistol’ lands otherwise responsible gun owner in hot water with the law

An otherwise responsible gun owner has faced court over an incident with a toy gun that ‘wouldn’t hurt a fly’. DETAILS AND SENTENCING >> 

Launceston Magistrate Court.

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AN otherwise responsible gun owner has been convicted on firearms charges over possession of a “toy gel blaster” in George Town.

Benjamin James Clark, 29, pleaded guilty to possession of an “air pistol” on Tuesday after Magistrate Simon Brown found it met at least one of the criteria needed to be considered a firearm in a contest hearing at Launceston Magistrates Court.

He said the imitation Sig Sauer P226 fired a projectile using compressed air powered by a battery.

Police prosecutor Paul Turner said a member of the public called police on December 6, 2018 after seeing Clark in a car at George Town pointing the pistol up a street.

Police intercepted Clark a short time later, searched his car and found the pistol, a bag containing 0.1g of methamphetamine and a glass smoking pipe.

He submitted to an oral fluid test, which returned a positive result for methamphetamine.

Defence lawyer Grant Tucker said Clark had held a firearms license since he was 18 years old and his guns were “appropriately stored in a safe”.

He said the pistol with “pieces of blue plastic” on it “wouldn’t hurt a fly” and Clark had purchased it locally from a vendor who said it was legal.

“[Clark is] upset that possession of what he considers to be a toy has spoiled his otherwise perfect record in regard to firearms,” Mr Tucker said.

Clark’s firearms license has been returned to him after a period of suspension over the charges.

Mr Tucker said Clark had used ice recreationally after his father passed away to deal with his grief, but had stopped and “is not using any drugs whatsoever”.

Magistrate Brown said the incident “caused some concern” to the member of the public who saw Clark with the pistol.

“The lesson is that sometimes people don’t pay close attention or they might not have had the knowledge and may have thought it was real,” he said.

“You should have been more careful about that.”

Clark was convicted and fined $400 for possession of the firearm, methamphetamine and smoking device.

He was fined a further $350, convicted and disqualified from driving for three months for driving with an illicit drug in his blood.