Enthusiast who used 'military issue' arsenal to recreate battles in his attic

[Feuer Frei!]

It is a fearsome array of weapons including a Kalashnikov, Uzi sub-machine gun, shotguns and pistols.
Packing enough fire-power to impress even the most ardent NRA activist, this astonishing arsenal did not belong to a gang of organised criminals, but formed part of the private collection of an over enthusiastic British grocery store owner.
Despite it being illegal to own a hand gun or automatic fire weapon in the UK, David Evans claimed he bought replica weapons to use for ‘war games’ in his loft, where he kitted out mannequins with imitation guns to recreate scenes from war movies such as Saving Private Ryan.
But yesterday the self-confessed gun ‘fanatic’ was starting a 16-year jail term after being convicted of a total of 29 charges of possessing and transferring the weapons to two brothers who are already behind bars.
Evans’s haul, which at one point was stored in a cardboard box kept on top of an industrial-sized fridge at his business premises, included American and Israeli military-issue machine guns – some so state-of-the-art that they are issued only to special forces.
A ‘hitman-style’ pistol with a silencer attached was also discovered, along with more than 500 bullets.
Evans, 42, who lives near Birmingham, also held an MP40 machine gun, similar to those issued to armed police.
The gun fanatic had been banned from owning guns after he was jailed for three years in 2005 for posting an illegal firearm to a legitimate dealer in Scotland.
He told officers: ‘It might sound a bit sad but in my loft I had some mannequins which I dressed as German soldiers, American soldiers – but obviously I had no guns.
Officers who seized the cache of 16 deadly guns initially feared they may have been stored on behalf of a far-Right group such as the English Defence League.
Wolverhampton Crown Court heard that in late 2009, as his marriage crumbled and his business ran into difficulties, Evans asked friend Daniel Thatcher, a 25-year-old mechanic, to store the weapons.
Thatcher, who lived with his parents, passed five of the weapons to his brother, Lee, 29.
The weapons haul came to light when police arrested Daniel Thatcher on an unrelated matter and found a 9mm Uzi and a 9mm pistol and cartridges under his bed.
Detective Inspector Gary Dring said: ‘If word had got out that there were unsecured guns... they may have been stolen by criminals and I dread to think what could have happened.’
The Thatcher brothers each admitted possession of firearms and ammunition last September. Daniel Thatcher was jailed for three years and eight months. His brother received a 15-month sentence.



SOURCE

The article mentions replica guns.
To me that means non-firing weapons/toys. Replica meaning copy, not real.
Imitation meaning not real.
*shrugs shoulders*