Man was nabbed with two knives

Blades found after police searched drunken lout

A tooled-up yob marched into the street armed with two blades, a court was told.

Sozzled thug Michael Hughes, 25, was bleeding from a wound to his ear, and had stashed a knife with a seven-inch blade down his trousers, and had another knife with a four-inch blade in the back of them, when he was busted on Boxing Day last year.

Paisley Sheriff Court heard that a witness living at the town’s Alice Street heard a disturbance when she looked out of the window and saw the heavily-armed accused stomping down the road.

Fiscal depute Masooma Jaffri said: “The witness heard a loud bang she believed coming from the close door and looked out of the window where she saw a male in the street.

“The male was carrying a knife behind his back.

“Police were contacted and when they arrived they stopped the male and a search was carried out.

“The male was heavily intoxicated, he had a cut on his left ear, and when officers asked if he had anything sharp on him he replied, ‘I have got two knives in my trousers.’

“Officers recovered a knife with a seven-inch blade from the front waistband of his trousers and they also recovered a knife with a fourinch blade from the back of his trousers.”

Cops arrested, cautioned and charged Hughes, of Fitzalan Place in the town, who claimed to officers: “I took them off someone else.”

Yesterday he pleaded guilty to charges of having the knives on him on December 26, 2016, without having a reasonable excuse or lawful authority.

It emerged that Hughes who has previous convictions for violence, was in breach of bail conditions on another matter and had also failed to appear at court.

His defence agent Michael McKeown said: “He suffers from anxiety, depression, and has suffered from panic attacks.

“He has pleaded guilty to these matters and I would urge the court continue bail while it obtains reports in preparation for sentencing.”

However Sher i f f Tom McCartney had the accused banged up in custody given the gravity of the offences and for breaching the terms of his bail.

He said: “I have to consider the matters you have plead guilty to, and the other matters before me involving breaking bail conditions and failing to attend court as well as failing to cooperate with reports.

“There is a substantial risk in this, therefore bail is removed and you will be remanded in custody.”

Hughes will discover his fate when he appears for sentencing next month.