Hartlepool man accused of unlawfully possessing chainsaw in Raby Road

Lewis Dungey, of Hartlepool, is accused of possessing the chainsaw, classed on court documents as an “offensive weapon”, "without lawful authority or reasonable excuse” in the town’s Raby Road on October 29.

He appeared before Teesside Magistrates’ Court, in Middlesbrough, for the first time in connection with the charge earlier this month.

Justices have transferred the case to nearby Teesside Crown Court ahead of a possible jury trial.

A second charge of possessing an offensive weapon in a public place, in this case a knuckle duster on the same day and again in Raby Road, was withdrawn.

Dungey, who is 28 years of age and who lives in Raby Road, was granted unconditional bail by magistrates until Tuesday, December 12, when he will face a judge for a plea and trial preparation hearing.