West Belfast man with 99 convictions jailed for having gun and cocaine

A WEST Belfast man with almost 100 convictions has been handed a five-year sentence for having a gun and cocaine.

John Neale (52), of Clonfaddan Street, will serve half his sentence in jail and the remaining 30 months on supervised licence after his release.

He pleaded guilty at Belfast Crown Court to possessing a firearm in suspicious circumstances, buying the weapon and having it without a certificate.

Neale also admitted possessing a quantity of cocaine with intent to supply.

Prosecution barrister David Russell said that after he was arrested in Belfast city centre on another matter in September 2018, police carried out a search of his home.

Under a mattress in a bedroom, officers found a Browning 9mm self-loading handgun inside a plastic bag.

They also recovered three bags of cocaine in a coat weighing 744 grammes which had a purity level of up to six per cent and a street value of between £35-40,000.

The court heard that the bag containing the firearm was examined and found to contain Neale's DNA.

Mr Russell told Judge Kevin Finnegan that he had a total of 99 previous convictions for a "range of offences'' including hijacking and robbery.

Defence QC Eilis McDermott said the only forensic evidence linking Neale to the firearm was his DNA on the outside of the bag.

"There is no evidence he handled the firearm. Swab tests and fingerprint examination showed no forensic link between him and the weapon. No ammunition was found for the firearm.''

Handing down a five-year sentence for the firearm offences, Judge Finnegan imposed a concurrent sentence of three years for possessing Class A drugs with intent to supply.

The judge granted a prosecution application for a destruction order on the firearm and drugs.

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