A farm worker's shotgun licence was withdrawn after he blew up a postbox, a court heard. Adam Atton was drunk when he used a "crow scarer device" in a letterbox and lit the gadget, sparking an explosion and causing damage.
He voluntarily went to Nottinghamshire Police about the criminal damage incident, the location of which was not known in court, and the matter was the subject of something called "Community Resolution" - which provides an opportunity for the police to deal with appropriate low-level offences and offenders without recourse to formal criminal justice sanctions.
However, a decision was taken his shotgun licence would be revoked. A notice was sent to 20-year-old Atton by Leicestershire Police at an address he was no longer living at. He had 14 days to appeal this, and did not, as he was not aware of it.
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Nottingham Magistrates' Court heard Atton, who held such a certificate since the age of 15 and shoots on private land, believed he still held a shotgun certificate. Police attended Atton's grandfather's address in Upper Broughton, Melton Mowbray.
Atton was out shooting with one of the shotguns on March 1, which led to his prosecution for not having a certificate for a Browning single-barrel shotgun. He pleaded guilty on Tuesday, September 27, and was fined £93, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £34 and costs of £85.
Atton, of Station Road, Upper Broughton, works for his grandfather on his farm where the guns are kept. When he wanted to use them, he would ask his grandfather, explained Tim Hollis, mitigating. "His (Atton's) mistake, and what led to this offence, is he never notified Leicestershire Police of a change of address, so the certificate was still registered to the family home he had lived at. A lifelong friend moved into that household. Atton overlooked it", he added.
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