A WEST Belfast man linked to a haul of ammunition and components for bomb-making has been jailed.
Kevin Anthony McLaughlin (38) was informed by Belfast Recorder, Judge David McFarland, that he was being sentenced for storing the items - and that some of the items were "potentially lethal."
McLaughlin, from Ballymurphy Drive, will serve half his five and a half year sentence in prison.
Crown barrister Michael Chambers said: "It is clear these were items that were being stored on behalf of a terrorist organisation."
The offences arose following the search of a house in the Twinbrook area on November 22, 2015. A large bag was located in the attic, and inside were smaller bags containing items such as three mercury tilt switches, 695 assorted cartridges, detonators and a magazine for an AK47.
McLaughlin had no links to the house that was searched, but his palm and finger prints were present on some of the bags containing the items.
Also found during the search was a Paypoint receipt, located at the bottom of the big bag, which indicated a cash payment made at a shop on Springhill Avenue on March 28, 2015 bearing the name 'E McLaughlin' and with an address at Ballymurphy Drive.
McLaughlin was arrested, and when he was interviewed in February 2017, he declined to answer any questions. He also declined to give evidence during the short trial, where he faced five charges including possessing explosives under suspicious circumstances, possessing firearms and ammunition in suspicious circumstances and possessing ammunition designed to penetrate armour plating or body armour.
Last month, McLaughlin was convicted by Judge McFarland on four of the five charges, but was cleared of possessing the items with intent to endanger life or cause serious injury to property.
Sending McLaughlin to prison, Judge McFarland said that while he accepted the "quality and quantity" of the explosives were "modest", the components could be used to make a bomb. The Judge also noted that the armour-piercing bullets were designed to cause maximum damage.
Speaking afterwards, PSNI Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Griffin said police demonstrated its "commitment to tackling those involved in dissident republican terrorist activity".
"The materials which Mr McLaughlin possessed would likely have caused serious harm to communities in Northern Ireland and could have killed or injured," he said.
"We will continue to work with communities to reduce the threat posed by those involved in such activity and would ask people to contact police if they have any suspicions about terrorist activity."
