Glasgow man caught with nine homemade guns claimed he was 'holding them for a friend'

A man was caught with nine homemade guns in his home which he claimed he was looking after for a friend.

Salvatore Lupi was found with the firearms at the property in Maryhill on October 20, 2023.

The 39-year-old stored the “bore zip type” guns and ammunition in a cupboard and TV unit.

Lupi told police that he was holding the weapons for a friend who had been thrown out of his mother’s house.

On Tuesday, a court was told that his friend took his own life with a firearm while Lupi was in custody.

Lupi pled guilty at at the High Court in Glasgow to possession of the nine guns without the authority of Scottish ministers.

He also admitted two charges of having ammunition without a firearms certificate.

The court heard that police acted on intelligence that guns were stored in the house.

Officers had been informed Lupi was storing the items for a man known to be involved in serious and organised crime.

No direct links between Lupi and the man were found.

Police stopped Lupi in the street where he admitted possession of firearms and ammunition before a search of his home was carried out.

Eight metal poles were kept in polythene bags in the cupboard along with rounds of ammunition.

The poles were described as “homemade devices” of two pieces of metal tubing screwed together.

Other pieces of metal had also been screwed and threaded together to make a firing pin.

The eight poles were tested and all successfully fired a 12-bore primed shotgun cartridge.

There was a further smaller pole recovered which was similar to the others.

This gun was capable of firing .303 British bulleted cartridges.

Prosecutor Kath Harper said that the seven rounds of .22 ammunition for long rifles found in the cupboard could be chambered in the recovered devices.

A further eight rounds of this ammunition were stored in the TV unit.

Allan Macleod, defending, told the court that his client was looking after the guns for a friend he used to work with.

The advocate said: “Mr Lupi advises that his friend had drug, alcohol and mental health issues.

“He had been thrown out of his mother’s house and he was moving between his girlfriend and hostels at the time.

“He asked to stay with Mr Lupi and he took the view that the items he knew were firearms were safer kept in his house rather than hostels around Glasgow.

“He told the police while in custody that the firearms had come from his friend.

“Officers confirmed to him that his friend had committed suicide using a firearm of this design. This was news to Mr Lupi at the time.”

Mr Macleod said that Lupi’s finger prints or DNA were not on the weapons recovered from his home.

It was revealed that Lupi has one previous conviction for behaving in a threatening or abusive manner.

Sentence was deferred until next month pending background reports until next month by Judge Lord Colbeck who continued Lupi’s remand in custody meantime.