A MAN threatened to behead police officers with a samurai sword if they turned up at his Talsarn home after he made two 999 calls, a court heard.

Paul Lesley Dennis Bythell, 27, admitted sending a menacing and offensive message over a communication network during a 999 call where he was abusive and aggressive toward a call handler in the early hours of 2 January.

Prosecutor Vaughan Pritchard Jones said Bythell, who now lives at Llys y Malwod in Llanon, had made an initial call to the ambulance service saying that he had taken a quantity of pills with alcohol.

When the call handler tried to get Bythell’s address he hung up, but minutes later made a second call saying that he would chop off the heads of any police officers who attended at his home.

Mr Pritchard Jones said: “On more than one occasion he said he was going to cause harm to police officers if they turned up.”

Despite the threats and abuse, police officers were sent to Bythell’s home and a search found a samurai sword, although officers said it was not “easily accessible” as it was kept in a cupboard.

During an interview with police Bythell admitted making the threats during abusive phone calls.

Defence solicitor Alan Lewis said Bythell, who has suffered with mental health problems, had received help from a range of agencies in Ceredigion which had helped him move on from the incident.

Mr Lewis said it had helped address several of the issues Bythell had been going through at the time.

He added: “My client has asked me to express today again his apologies to the police. I think the police have accepted my client was in a bad place at the time of the offence.”

Bythell was given a 12-month community order and will have to complete 25 rehabilitation activity requirement days as part of the order.

He was also ordered to pay costs totalling £145.