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A woman who had 54 balaclavas and 118 bullets in her house has avoided being jailed.

Jennifer Lennox, 54, of Main Street, Portglenone, was handed an 11-month term for possession of ammunition in suspicious circumstances.

She was sentenced to a further 11 months for each of two counts of possession of articles for use in terrorism.

The sentences will run concurrently and have been suspended for three years.

Speaking after the sentencing at Antrim Crown Court on Friday, Det Insp Lavery said officers found the items during a search of a residential property in Ballymoney in November 2021.

They also found instructions on how to make an improvised explosive device - which the court previously heard Lennox believed to be "baking recipes".

"The items could have been used to cause serious harm and we are thankful that they have been removed from our streets," he said.

Exploitation

On Friday, Judge Alistair Devlin said it was clear Lennox has been exploited by "seasoned offenders" and to jail her would exposure her to potential further exploitation and could lead to self harm given her mental health difficulties.

The judge also told the court how Lennox gave an account of a man she knew to have associations with the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) coming to her home and ordering her to store the items, so "fearing repercussions" she held on to them.

Imposing the sentence, Judge Devlin said there were features to satisfy him the case was exceptional and justified a suspended term.

Other factors, said the judge, included Lennox's clear record, cooperation with police, her early guilty pleas and that she has moved away and cut any associations she had to Ballymoney.