A MAN who admitted having a machete in Weymouth has been handed a prison sentence.

Tony Edward Barnes, 49, pleaded guilty to the charge of having an article with a bladed point and also a charge of possessing a controlled drug of Class B, namely cannabis, when he appeared before Dorchester Crown Court.

There were sobs from the public gallery as Barnes, of Bridlebank Way, was sent to jail for a total of 10 weeks.

Prosecutor Heather Shimmen told the court the offences took place on March 13 this year when police were alerted by an anonymous caller to an incident involving the defendant having the machete in Ricketts Close in Weymouth.

She said when police arrived they were informed the defendant had left in a black BMW and it was picked up by CCTV that the vehicle was in Maiden Street.

Miss Shimmen said: “There was a machete on the rear seat of the vehicle with a blade of approximately 18 inches in length.

“The defendant got out of the car and was arrested.

“A search was carried out and he was found to also have cannabis.”

Miss Shimmen added: “When interviewed about this matter his first explanation was to say, ‘I’m an idiot’. He then went on to explain that he had a call from a friend who was in trouble and was going to get beaten up.

“He said he grabbed the first thing he could to hand and took it with him to the location where he saw his friend arguing with a couple of men and women.”

She added: “He accepted the cannabis was his and he used it for pain relief and personal use.”

In mitigation, Timothy Shorter said: “He has brought himself to this court and to the possibility of a custodial sentence because he acted rashly and without thought when going to the assistance of a friend.”

Judge Roger Jarvis sentenced Barnes to 10 weeks for having an article with a bladed point in a public place and one week, to run concurrently, for the charge of possessing a controlled Class B drug.

Judge Jarvis said to the defendant: “This was by any measure a serious matter.

“I have said before and I will say again everybody is nowadays particularly concerned when they learn of people out in a public place with a weapon that is a bladed article.

“The message must go out that those, whatever their personal circumstances, who go out and about with knives can expect to go to prison."