A GUNMAN who terrified passers-by in Worcester was not a thug but was suffering from a mental condition, a court was told.

Nicholas Jackson pointed the pistol at the head of an elderly man in Farrier Street, witnessed by a father and his young son.

He then brandished the weapon at a cyclist in Hylton Road and ordered him to slow down, said Alistair Young, prosecuting at Worcester Crown Court.

Jackson was arrested later the same day after a police armed response unit had been alerted. The repeater air pistol was found to be unloaded.

The 37-year-old was suffering from hypermania. But he was waiting for stronger medication, said defence counsel Samantha Powis.

Jobless Jackson, of Lear Close, Dines Green, Worcester, admitted two counts of having an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

Passing a three-year community rehabilitation order on condition he co-operate with treatment, Judge John Cavell accepted Jackson acted irrationally while suffering from mental illness.

The judge said a custodial sentence in such an exceptional case could have a harmful effect on the offender.

But he added: "People were frightened for their lives and it's no great consolation to know there was no actual risk of injury."

Incident

William Ambrose and his son Zak witnessed the first incident on August 18, but luckily the pensioner failed to notice the gun and continued walking, said Mr Young.

Jackson, sporting a ponytail and wearing shorts and a T-shirt, then confronted cyclist Graham Philpotts as he rode by a footbridge.

Mr Philpotts went to the nearby offices of BBC Hereford & Worcester to alert police.

Jackson told officers he carried the gun for self-defence. Seven years ago he was fined for carrying a firearm in a public place.

Miss Powys said Jackson had suffered from hypermania since 1989, a mental condition which had been stabilised for a long time.

But Jackson's doctor was contacted after his father noticed a deterioration in his health. Unfortunately, stronger medication was not prescribed.

Since the gun incident, Jackson had been treated in a clinic for two months and was now much better.

Miss Powis said he was normally a polite and intelligent man. Although he had never meant any harm to people, he had been preoccupied with his own "torment".

"He isn't a thug but was a very sick man," she added. "If the authorities had responded, this whole sorry episode could have been avoided."