Jail for man who made ammo 'in case of invasion'

A Slovakian national "obsessed with guns" has been jailed after claiming to investigators that he was learning how to manufacture ammunition in case the UK was invaded.

Stefan Fenyes, 47, from Warwick, came to the attention of the National Crime Agency (NCA), after making 227 separate online orders for items that could be used to produce live ammunition.

Fenyes, who was sentenced to five years in prison, told investigators he had a keen interest in survivalism and "doomsday prepping" for civil unrest.

He pleaded guilty in April to charges of possession of a prohibited weapon and possession of prohibited ammunition without the correct certificates.

Orders included tools to reload fired rounds, specially made brushes to clean gun barrels and boxes for storing ammunition.

His home was searched and NCA officers recovered a Czech-manufactured pistol complete with a loaded magazine and rounds of live ammunition.

Other items seized included gun barrels and component parts, as well as the tools Fenyes had ordered online to produce live ammunition.

A "doomsday prepper" is someone who anticipates a disaster or emergency and actively prepares for it by stockpiling food or supplies, according to the Oxford English Dictionary.

Fenyes was arrested in March last year in Royal Leamington Spa at his workplace and was jailed at Birmingham Crown Court.

He also had military survival guidebooks and a series of items relating to hunting and archery, such as crossbows and knives.

Fenyes told investigators he was in the process of learning how to manufacture ammunition as it would be useful knowledge if the UK was invaded by a foreign state, or in case of large-scale civil unrest.

NCA senior investigating officer Rick Mackenzie said Fenyes was "clearly obsessed with guns and was intent on assembling an arsenal of weapons".

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