Police discovered the ammunition in a dead man's house

Mar 7, 2014 14:11 GMT  ·  By

Police officers in South Yorkshire retrieved an impressive collection of First and Second World War weapons from the house of a man who had just died.

Hundreds of decades-old munitions including grenades, bullets, guns and mortar shells were discovered in the modest house situated on Sheffield Road in Penistone following the death of Martin Johnson.

The discovery prompted the evacuation of 100 homes and businesses in the area. Sheffield Road was closed and a 100-meter (328-foot) cordon was put in place for more than eight hours. The arsenal was safely removed yesterday.

Police was called to Martin Johnson’s home by neighbors who were concerned about his welfare. The officers found the 51-year-old man, known to friends as Seth, dead in his bed. Inside the house, they discovered a huge collection of World War Two memorabilia.

Half a dozen rifles and guns were propped against a radiator in the deceased man's house. Every room of the lounge was filled with rare items like knuckledusters and unusual firearms. The weapons were hung on walls, displayed in cabinets or piled in shelves.

“Following the discovery of the gentleman, we found a number of what appeared to be war munitions and weapons. The occupant had clearly been collecting these things for an entire lifetime,” Chief Inspector Andy Hodgkinson said, as reported by the Yorkshire Post.

Police is not treating the man's death as suspicious.

A team of bomb disposal experts was called to deal with the arsenal of munitions. They removed the dangerous items yesterday and were planning to carry out a controlled explosion.

Mr. Hodgkinson says that it's legal to keep weapons like those found in Martin Johnson’s home as long as they are certified as safe. He also mentions that the impressive collection includes some very valuable items which will probably be returned to the family members.

“In my 26 years of policing I have never seen a collection of firearms or shells as significant as the one we discovered in that house,” Hodgkinson added.

It seems that Mr. Johnson was a loved man among his neighbors as they described him as a friendly man with a “big heart and a larger than life character.”

Ian Haddington, who has owned a local pub for six years and knew Johnson well, said, “He will definitely be missed by the locals. He loved collecting his war memorabilia - he was fascinated by it. That’s all he used to do, that’s all he was bothered about. He wouldn’t harm anybody, he just loved collecting.”