WILLIAM Field was armed with an illegal electronic stun gun when he went to his nephew s home to settle a dispute over a family funeral on Monday morning. He threatened to torch Mark Field s £12,500 van when he was refused entry to his home — and produced

WILLIAM Field was armed with an illegal electronic stun gun when he went to his nephew's home to settle a dispute over a family funeral on Monday morning.

He threatened to torch Mark Field's £12,500 van when he was refused entry to his home - and produced a can of petrol from his car.

Police called to the incident found the stun gun, similar to the taser guns currently being trialled by Cambridgeshire police, in Field's Ford Focus, along with a cosh and a lock knife.

At Fenland Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, 48-year-old Field, of Hillside Road, March, admitted threatening to set fire to the van, and possessing the three weapons.

He was sent to Cambridge Crown Court for sentencing and remanded in custody.

Field had tried to telephone his nephew 17 times the previous night, said Nicola Ebbs, prosecuting.

He went to Mark Field's home in the Birches at March about 8.30am.

He complained about the unanswered calls, and when refused entry to the property threatened to burn the van out.

Police were called when he collected a silver petrol can from his car.

Field told officers he could "not stand the sight of Mark Field" and again threatened to burn his van.

Inside Field's car, police found a silver petrol can containing 2.5 litres of petrol, a black plastic stun gun with four electrodes which was in working order, a black wooden cosh, a lock knife, and a box of matches.

"If he had carried out the threat, the consequences could have been serious," said Miss Ebbs.

"The van could have exploded in the vicinity of the house, and serious injury could have been caused."

In mitigation Roger Glazebrook said Field had not used or attempted to use any of the weapons.

There had been a family dispute over his mother's funeral after she died last December, and Field had tried to sort it out with his nephew.

"He is ashamed of what he did, he said. "He had no intention of using the petrol or the weapons. He was under a lot of strain because of the family dispute.