Scots man caged after searching for Dunblane massacre and buying gun on dark web

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A gun nut who trawled the internet for information on the Dunblane massacre has been jailed for buying a gun from the dark web.

James Maxwell was locked up for five years after also ordering ammunition.A court heard the 28-year-old, of Leven, Fife, also searched online for when schools broke up for Christmas in 2022.

He appeared for sentencing at the High Court in Edinburgh on Thursday via video link from HMP Perth.At an earlier hearing he had admitted six charges, including being in possession of indecent images of children.

Judge Lord Ericht handed Maxwell a nine-year extended sentence.The sentence comprises five years in prison and a further four years when he will be monitored after release from jail, telling him: "You are a grave risk to public safety."In September, Maxwell pleaded guilty to purchasing and attempting to acquire a prohibited weapon without permission or without holding a firearms certificate between December 1, 2022 and January 11, 2023.Maxwell also admitted buying and attempting to acquire and possess ammunition, as well as attempting to import the firearm from the US and bullets without lawful authority. Join the Daily Record's WhatsApp community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages. He pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography between April 22, 2022 and January 11, 2023 as well as possessing extreme images involving animals.During sentencing, judge Lord Ericht told Maxwell: "You did a search for when the schools broke up for Christmas 2022.