A man found in possession of two knuckle dusters and cannabis in a hostel in Pembroke has been fined in court.

Thirty-one-year-old John Brunton, pleaded guilty to possessing an offensive weapon in the communal area of the Riverside Hostel in Pembroke, and possessing 0.9 grammes of herbal cannabis, when he appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

Prosecutor Ellie Morgan told magistrates that police officers attended the Hostel on December 6, of last year, and were met by Mr. Brunton in the reception area.

“He was trying to delay the officers from getting to the rooms they needed to get to.

“It was an urgent call as Mr. Brunton’s partner was distressed and there was a concern that she had made an attempt on her life,” explained Ms Morgan.

The defendant’s partner was taken by ambulance crew for assessment, and police found a box concealed in the washroom area that contained medication for her.

“Police also found two knuckle dusters and the herbal cannabis in the box. Mr. Brunton told police that he wasn’t stupid, and that he was going to hide the cannabis from the police,” she continued.

“The defendant told officers that he didn’t have the knuckle dusters with the intention of hitting someone, but took ‘selfies’ with them on.

“He also said that he’d used cannabis since he was 14 year old,” added Ms Morgan.

Defence solicitor Kate Williams told the court that Mr. Brunton had taken the box into the public washroom as he didn’t want to get arrested when the emergency services arrived on the scene to attend to his partner.

“Ordinarily the items would have been kept in the defendant’s private residence, so it wasn’t as if he was taking the knuckle dusters, which were just for show, into an outside public place,” she told the court.

Magistrates fined Mr. Brunton £100 for possessing an offensive weapon, and ordered no separate penalty of the cannabis charge. He was ordered to pay costs of £85 and a £30 victim surcharge.

Magistrates also ordered for the forfeiture and destruction of the knuckle dusters and cannabis.