by A couple found selling a collection of martial arts weapons and knives at a car boot sale on Sunday morning avoided jail time after claiming they did not know their highly dangerous stock was illegal in the UK. Xing Yu, 29, and Bilian Weng, 28, both restaurant workers, surprised other traders as they unloaded trinkets and clothes from their vehicles at 6am by displaying 12 lock knives, five knives and batteries on their stall.
When questioned, the pair, who are from China but have lived in Britain for over ten years, said they did not realize they were breaking the law, as such items are regularly sold in markets in their country native They also claimed they bought the items from another stall at Winnick’s car boot sale in Warrington, Cheshire and planned to sell them for a profit.
During a search of their home, police found a telescopic baton. At Warrington magistrates’ court, Yu and Weng, of Openshaw, Manchester, admitted charges of possession of offensive weapons and bladed articles in a public place, as well as possession of an offensive weapon in a private place and possession of a weapon to purpose of sale or hire.
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The incident happened on August 4 this year, during one of the couple’s regular visits to a car boot sale. This event is said to be one of the largest of its kind in the North West, with hundreds of vendors attending each week.
The prosecutor, Mr Kassem Noureddine, explained: “Basically this is a husband and wife who go to a car boot sale as they do every Sunday to sell some items, some of which are included in the charges – the one of the most serious of which is holding knives. in a public place.
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A probation officer who interviewed Yu said: “He has been living in the UK for ten years after leaving school in China and coming to the UK to improve his life.
“He met his wife in 2019 and they got married two years ago. He tells me before this incident a week before he attended the same car boot sale and bought the knives and nuns at the car boot sale.
“He took them home and returned the following week with the intention of selling the knives and black witches for a small profit. He bought the nuns for £5 and was going to sell them for £8 to £10. In his mind he didn’t think he was breaking the law at the time.
“China is very different from England and I think it was a huge wake-up call.”
The probation officer said he discussed topics such as knife crime, fatal attacks, and gangs with Yu during the interview to help him understand the severity of the issues, adding: “He was very foolish to try effectively selling knives and weapons to people. He wouldn’t know.
“It was a huge mistake and I don’t think you’ll see it again. ‘If he went to prison it would have a big impact on his wife who I understand has health problems and is dependent on the defendant to support her.
“The incident appears to be very isolated. He was extremely naive and foolish and no doubt he will learn his lesson.”
A second probation worker who spoke to Weng said: “Her parents moved to the UK and she followed her parents when she was about 14 or 15. She believes the items were bought at a car boot sale the week before and she thought. it was okay to sell them on.
“They have also attended other boot sales to try and make a profit. She admits she was quite naive about the offenses in this country regarding these types of items. She has no intention of selling anything like this again. hereafter.”
Defense lawyer Gary Scholar said: “They have committed these offenses in a state of naivety and ignorance. They certainly didn’t believe they were breaking the law in any way. Now that they know the legal position, they will never act in this way again and I do not believe it is necessary to put either of the defendants in prison.”
Both faced up to 12 months in prison under sentencing guidelines but were given four months in prison, suspended for 12 months. They were also ordered to pay £239 in costs and a victim surcharge and ordered to forfeit and destroy the knives and weapons.
Sentencing the couple, who spoke with the help of a Mandarin interpreter, JP Iain Deas said: “These are serious offences, however, we are prepared to accept that you have both made a one-off mistake here which is unlikely to be repeated.
“We don’t believe you deserve to go to jail today. We took into account your good character and lack of previous convictions. You are at low risk of re-offending.”
