A prominent loyalist was compelled to leave his home in Portadown after receiving a Loyalist Volunteer Force death threat, Craigavon Magistrates' Court has been told. Barry Bradbury (57), a market trader of Donard Gardens, Lurgan, was charged with possessing a .22 pistol, a starter pistol and a quantity of ammunition on December 3rd, 1997.
He admitted the charge, and Mr Ken Nixon RM imposed a six-month sentence suspended for two years.
The court was told by a DPP lawyer that on December 3rd last year the weapons and ammunition were discovered during a planned search by police investigating an unconnected matter at Bradbury's home.
Mr Paul Kennedy, solicitor, defending, said Bradbury received a death threat last year, and in addition a dead cat was left on his doorstep and his car was burned.
Bradbury, the solicitor said, had hoped that the weapons, given to him by a friend, would improve his safety. On December 12th last, Mr Kennedy said, two men burst into Bradbury's home in Lurgan, forcing their way past his partner. Bradbury managed to close a bedroom door. Shots were fired but he was not injured, though, his solicitor said, he still suffers trauma.