A police stop on a distinctive purple van landed the driver with a five year prison sentence after he owned up to having a gun in his trousers.
Officers stopped the vehicle in the High Street, Thornton Heath, because a similar van had been linked to burglaries in the area.
And when they asked James Simpson if he had anything of interest he confessed he had a loaded Walther PPK handgun in his waistband.
James Simpson admitted to having this loaded gun in his waistband
When police searched his home in Stockwell on November 8 last year, the day after he was stopped, they found more ammunition.
He pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and possession of ammunition at Croydon Crown Court on December 17.
And the 47-year-old was sentenced at the same court yesterday.
Simpson’s 55-year-old passenger was also arrested but he was released without charge.
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