A senior judge has called for an inquiry into the decision to charge a Walsall man who had a gun and ammunition with an offence that meant he could only be jailed for 18 months rather than five years.

Judge John Warner observed at Wolverhampton Crown Court yesterday: “Given the climate in which we live and the position that society and the courts take about firearms this was unusual if not perverse.

“This was a firearm which was a potentially lethal weapon. The ammunition found with it would go into the weapon and it could have killed somebody.”

He told Julian Elcock, prosecuting: “I appreciate this had nothing to do with you, but I would like an inquiry into how this situation came about and I would like a written response within 14 days.”

Police found an old .22 Belgian revolver and six rounds of ammunition in a bag at the back of a wardrobe when they raided the home of petrol station boss Altaf Khan in Beacon Street, Chuckery, Walsall.

They also discovered a bottle of methadone and a small amount of cannabis during the early morning swoop last November that was prompted by suspicions that there were drugs at the property, said Mr Elcock.

Khan, a 39-year-old with no previous convictions and two children at grammar school, was fighting heroin addiction, the court heard.

He told West Midlands Police that the gun and ammunition had been in a display case when he bought them as an ornament from a car boot sale.

Glynn Whitehouse, defending, said: “When the case broke the gun and ammunition was swept away, put in the wardrobe and forgotten about.

“Nothing has been found to detract from this explanation. He has been open and honest about this. and it is a wholly exceptional set of circumstances.”

Khan admitted possession of class A and B drugs, ammunition and having the gun without a certificate. The last offence is in a section of the Firearms Act that carries a five year maximum sentence.

Other sections of the same Act carry a five year minimum prison term for the offender.

Judge Warner told Khan, who holds the franchise for a petrol station in Stechford, Birmingham: “If you had been charged in a different way you would be facing a five year minimum sentence. But I am not going to sentence you through the back door.

“You say that you bought the gun and ammunition as an ornament, but by keeping it you were keeping it in circulation, even though you did not intend to use it in a criminal way.

“I also fully understand and accept the circumstances but the nature of the weapon and the presence of the ammunition for it means that I cannot pass a sentence of less than 18 months in jail.

“Remember, it could have been five years,” the judge told Khan.