THOMAS Lamont was carrying a two-foot machete in a carrier bag as he walked along a Blackburn street in the middle of the afternoon.

And Blackburn magistrates accepted his claim that he was going to use it to cut down nettles at the home of his former partner so that the children could play in the garden.

Mr Lamont, 35, of Byrom Street, Blackburn, was acquitted after a trial of possessing an article with a sharply pointed blade in a public place.

Announcing their decision the magistrates said they found his explanation plausible and accepted, on the balance of probabilities, that he had intended to use the instrument to carry out work.

Basharat Ditta, defending, said there was no legal definition of what is a good reason for carrying an implement such as the machete.

"Your worships must decide whether he was carrying that item with good reason," said Mr Ditta. "He said in his interview that if he had been doing anything wrong he would have got on his toes when the police approached him."

Earlier Mr Lamont told the court he had been working at his former partner's home in Taylor Close, trying to clear the garden so the children could play in it.

He had tried using a strimmer and a scythe but neither was robust enough for the job.

He had borrowed the machete from a friend and when stopped by the police it was wrapped in foam and in a carrier bag with only the handle protruding.