AN Ely man caught with a six-inch bladed combat knife in the city just two days after a police amnesty was launched has been given a three-month suspended prison sentence. The weapon came to light after Stephan Mann called the police, claiming he was bein

AN Ely man caught with a six-inch bladed combat knife in the city just two days after a police amnesty was launched has been given a three-month suspended prison sentence.

The weapon came to light after Stephan Mann called the police, claiming he was being chased by a gang and had taken refuge in a garage.

And on Thursday Ely magistrates were shown the double bladed combat knife - and warned to be careful because it was sharp.

Mann, 22, of Windmill Close, Ely, had earlier admitted possessing a bladed article at the junction of Broad Street and Jubilee Terrace on May 26.

Mann had called the police at 9.55pm, saying he had taken refuge in a garage and was scared for his life, said prosecutor Matthew Bradbury.

He claimed more than 10 people had threatened to hurt him, and he could hear them outside.

It was all quiet when police arrived on the scene, but they found Mann, agitated and smelling of drink.

Officers asked if he had anything that could be harmful, and he indicated the knife with a 6.75 inch blade.

Mann claimed to have found the knife in the garage where he hid, but the garage owner had no knowledge of it.

"He later said he kept the knife as an ornament, he was proud of it and took it out to show a friend in Ely."

Mann had a previous conviction for possessing a bladed article, and was given a three-month sentence in a young offenders' institute in 2004.

Mitigating, Sandeep Kainth said the knife was never brandished or shown in public. It had been stored in his trousers, and Mann handed it over to police.

Mann had a problem with drink, he had drunk 14 cans of strong lager that day, and sometimes drank up to 24 cans a day. He was ordered to pay £50 costs, and forfeit the knife so it could be destroyed