A MAN tried to break into his ex’s parents’ house armed with knives and a Second World War bayonet.

Gary Williams battled depression following a split with his wife in 2018.

The 59-year-old said he “didn’t know what came over him” when he tried to break-in to the home in Bulphan on December 7 last year.

He was later arrested after Stanley knives and a Second World War bayonet were found near the home.

The weapons were recognised by Williams’ ex-wife, revealing he was the man trying to break in.

The couple were woken at around 2am with sounds of someone trying to break in downstairs through a window.

They confronted Williams who immediately fled the scene.

At Williams’ sentencing at Basildon Crown Court, Judge Andrew Hurst said: “Police attended and effectively you immediately indicated your guilt and you told the officers ‘I don’t know what I was thinking’.

“What happened was you caused significant alarm and distress to her parents.

“A considerable concern to this court was a discovery of a number of Stanley knives and a World War Two bayonet about 14 inches long, a serious weapon to inflict injuries. Those items firmly linked you to the crime.”

Mitigating, Jennifer Gray told the court that Williams is deeply remorseful and that he had been suffering since the separation from his wife.

She said: “He’s been a man who has worked very hard from the age of 16 through to his more recent early retirement.

“That was due in the main to his mental health problems.

“He is a man who at 59 is coming to the attention of the police and courts for the first time.

“I do not think I have seen someone who is quite as remorseful as he is.”

Ms Gray said Williams has put in place procedures where his friends look out for him and ensures he takes his medication.

Judge Hurst gave Williams, of Locks Meadow, Lingfield, Surrey, eight months suspended for two years with 30 days rehabilitation for criminal damage and having an offensive weapon.