Former Soldier Cleared Of Handling Allegedly Stolen Rifle

A former soldier accused of handling a £50,000 sniper rifle allegedly stolen from the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has been cleared.

Fifty-two-year-old Stuart Pemberton, of Temple, Corsley, Warminster, Wiltshire, was found not guilty of one count of handling stolen goods at Winchester Crown Court.

He was on trial alongside 71-year-old former Army captain Peter Laidler, of Anson Close, Marcham, Abingdon, Oxfordshire.

Laidler has also been found not guilty of five counts of theft but the jury is still deliberating on a further six counts of theft against him.

He was initially charged with two more counts of theft and another of handling stolen goods but Judge Richard Parkes QC directed a not guilty verdict on those during the trial.

Laidler, who is also a former police officer, is alleged to have stolen rifles worth tens of thousands of pounds.

Matthew Jewell QC, prosecuting, said that Laidler had worked as the armourer for the Small Arms School Collection (SASC) at Warminster where the majority of the weapons were allegedly stolen.

The SASC is a MOD collection showing the development of small weapons from the 16th century to the present day.

A third defendant, 61-year-old Roger Smith, of Bullfinch Road, Emsworth, Hampshire, an MOD police officer, has also been acquitted of five charges of handling stolen goods but the jury is still deliberating a further count of the same charge.

A fourth defendant, Adrian Bull, aged 64, of High Street, Devizes, Wiltshire, was earlier acquitted of three counts of handling stolen goods after the judge said there was no case to answer.

The defendants deny all the charges.

The jury has been sent home to continue its deliberations on Thursday.