Hornchurch: How ‘gun nut’ Raymond Frederick Nugent made pistols more powerful than factory models

An east London “gun nut” made, designed and repurposed powerful weapons in his workshop, building up a “lethal arsenal” over a number of years.

Raymond Frederick Nugent, of Coltishall Road, Hornchurch, cut cardboard templates before pressing metal to create the weapons, and designed his own firing mechanisms.

The 73-year-old was sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Friday (January 20) to seven-and-a-half years' in prison. He had been found guilty at an earlier hearing of 45 firearms offences.

Detective Superintendent Victoria Sullivan, Specialist Crime, said: “Though no evidence was found of any associated criminality linked to Nugent’s activities, the arsenal he had in his possession was lethal and, in the wrong hands, quite capable of causing incredibly serious harm.”

The investigation had begun when the National Crime Agency received a tip-off and allerted the Met Police to intelligence that Nugent had imported a blank firing weapon from the Czech Republic.

Detective Sergeant Andy Henderson, investigating officer, said: “Following the conclusion of criminal proceedings the weapons will now be destroyed. It is sheer luck that Nugent himself managed to avoid serious injury during production; though some appear crude, it is a highly dangerous enterprise, and anyone concerned in similar activities should be well aware of the consequences.”