Addict Gary White said he needed an arsenal of weapons which included an axe and a crossbow "because of the life that I lead".

He showed officers where to find the stun gun under a heavy oak wardrobe when they were carrying out a fruitless drug search at his Newton Abbot home.

The weapon had been imported from Malaysia by a friend who bought it by accident on the internet while trying to import LED lights.

White, aged 44, of Highweek Road, Newton Abbot, admitted possession of a prohibited weapon and was jailed for 12 months, suspended for two years and ordered to undertake a weekend curfew for two months by Judge Graham Cottle at Exeter Crown Court.

He told him: "You acquired this weapon to add to a collection of unpleasant items such as an axe, a crossbow and nunchucks all of which you intended to use if circumstances required it.

"You referred to the life you lead and said you needed them for your personal protection and were perfectly prepared to use the stun gun if necessary."

Miss Emmi Wilson, prosecuting, said police went to White’s home on October 9 last year and he showed them the stun gun, which was still in its packing, which advertised it as giving a shock of 3.2 million volts.

He told police:"When you lead the life I lead you need to be prepared."

Mr Jeffry Segan, defending, said White had not ordered the weapon but agreed to take it and wanted it for his protection. He is a long time heroin user who was worried about ’unpleasant people’ getting into his home.

He said White is keen to undertake rehabilitation work and a thinking skills programme recommended by the probation service.