Shropshire man threatened private eye with 'gun to the head'

Senior investigator Mike Naughton introduced himself to Mark Clark when he turned up at his address at Chapel Cottage, Prees Green, Whitchurch, on August 4 last year.

But Shrewsbury Crown Court heard that 33-year-old Clark refused to accept the papers and retreated back into the property.

Mr Delroy Henry, prosecuting, said another man and woman then came out of the address asking Mr Naughton to leave.

He said Clark then emerged with a firearm and Mr Naughton claimed that he pointed the weapon towards him and his head.

Mr Henry said: "Mr Naughton was unsurprisingly quite distressed by the entire debacle."

Police were called and searched Clark's property, finding a gas-powered air weapon.

Clark was handed a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and ordered to do 200 hours unpaid work when he appeared in court on Friday.

He was also told to pay £1,000 compensation, banned from possessing, using or buying a firearm for two years and given a 20-day rehabilitation activity requirement.

During the hearing, father-of-four Mr Naughton read out a hard-hitting victim personal statement explaining how the ordeal had affected him. The 52-year-old has been a private investigator since 2008 after leaving North Wales Police where he served for two years as a special constable.

He said he had been working completely within the law, shaking hands with Clark before stating who he was and why he was visiting.

Mr Naughton, who previously served in the RAF as a senior aircraftsman, said: "To then have a rifle aimed in my direction at my head, with Clark looking down the scope and knowing that the passenger window of my vehicle was down and therefore in the event that Clark opened fire I would have no protection and the pellet would have killed me."

He added: "This man has made these last eight months for me a misery for no other reason than he did not wish to receive a letter of the nature I delivered to him."

Clark admitted being in possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear.

Mr John Oates, representing him, said he was a hardworking man and had businesses dealing with cars and computers. He said the airgun had not been capable of firing a pellet.

Sentencing Clark, Judge Jim Tindal told him he was prepared to suspend a prison sentence.

He said: "It seems to me that you are quite an immature man. You don't necessarily have as much insight into what you did and the seriousness of what you did as you should."

Speaking after the case, Mr Naughton, of Flintshire, said he was slightly disappointed, claiming: "I wanted him to go to prison for what he did."