Jail for man who claimed dog found gun in bush

Two men, one of whom claimed his dog found a Glock pistol in a park bush, have been jailed for firearms offences.

Kristian Hristev and Kristiyan Romonov were jailed for nine years and five years and seven months respectively.

Hristev had said his dog had found the pistol in a Kent park but this was not accepted by the judge at Maidstone Crown Court.

The court previously heard it was only the second time such a weapon had been recovered in the UK.

Prosecutor Vivian Walters said Hristev's home was surrounded by armed officers last December.

He had been seen handing a rucksack containing the weapon and 10 rounds of live ammunition to Romonov.

After a standoff, officers found packages containing cocaine and 33 more rounds of ammunition on surrounding rooftops, Ms Walters said.

When Romonov was later stopped in a car, he told police he believed the bag contained a women's blouse which he had arranged to collect from Hristev's address.

The court was told the weapon was a "particularly dangerous" US-manufactured Glock model 42 self-loading pistol.

Hristev, of Parrs Head Mews, Rochester, pleaded guilty to transferring a prohibited firearm, transferring ammunition to another, possessing ammunition without a firearm certificate and possessing cocaine.

Romonov, of Windsor Road, Gillingham, pleaded guilty to possessing a prohibited firearm and possessing ammunition without a firearm certificate.