A TORMENTED householder who took the law into his hands after months of trouble from local yobs walked free from court yesterday.

Darren Gowland armed himself with a starting pistol and knuckle-dusters to scare off youths who had gathered outside his home.

The 44-year-old fired the gun into the ground and was chasing his tormentors along the street when he was seen by police on patrol.

He faced prison yesterday after he admitted possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

But Judge Tony Briggs imposed a suspended jail sentence after he accepted that Gowland had been plagued by problems in his neighbourhood.

He said, however, that the incident in Low Grange Avenue, Billingham, near Stockton, on June 30 last year, could have ended in tragedy.

A fortnight before the incident, Gowland’s new car, which was equipped for the arrival of his baby, had been vandalised.

Kieran Rainey, in mitigation, said the warehouse stock controller feared a repeat attack when he saw youths congregating near his home.

Mr Rainey said Gowland had been under pressure from a range of sources in his professional and personal life, and acted entirely out of character.

He told Teesside Crown Court: “It was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

“He asked the youths to move on and they refused. He went in and got his starter pistol and fired it into the ground. He regrets his actions deeply.”

Gowland, now of Durham Road, in nearby Wolviston, also admitted possessing an offensive weapon – the knuckle- dusters. Mr Rainey said Gowland bought the gun on the internet and got the knuckle-dusters for protection because threats had been made against him.

Judge Briggs said: “This is a case where there is a substantial background... but whatever the pressure, control is important.

“The unhappy experience of the courts is that when people react in the way you did, what frequently happens is that matters escalate out of all recognition and tragedies result.

“You should reflect long and hard on the picture you were showing to the oncoming police officers – a man armed with a gun, waving it about and running down the street.”

The six-month prison sentence was suspended for two years. Gowland was also put on supervision for 18 months.