A clown mask-wearing gunman was warned  to expect jail time after a jury convicted him of firing a starting pistol at a neighbour's head while demanding payment of an £800 debt.

At Gloucester Crown Court a jury of nine women and two men found Dean Snarey guilty of blackmail and possession of an imitation firearm while committing an offence.

Snarey, of Burns Way, Swindon, had denied the charges and claimed he took the Ekol Geiz blank-firing pistol to the home of neighbour Cameron Goucher to show to him because he had expressed an interest in buying it.

The 42-year-old said he fired it only because Mr Goucher asked for a demonstration of the gun - and he denied that it was close to Mr Goucher's head at the time.

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But at the end of a seven-day trial today the jury convicted him and he was remanded in custody for a pre-sentence report to be prepared.

The judge, Recorder David Chidgey, said a prison sentence was inevitable but a report about Snarey from the probation service would help him decide how long it should be.

He adjourned sentence until July 11.

During the trial the jury heard that Cameron had sold a Kia car to his neighbour Keith Goodings, who lived three doors away in Burns Way.

At 5am on the morning of  October 6th last year - when Mr Goodings was away from home - Snarey started phoning Natasha Hunt, who lived in the house with her son Mr Goucher, the court heard.

READ MORE: Gunman in clown mask left Swindon neighbour terrified

Snarey demanded payment of the £800 and told Ms Hunt she had two hours to get the money.

Shortly afterwards he was seen on CCTV leaving his house wearing a white Clown mask and heading towards Mr Gooding's house. He returned home ten minutes later but then made more calls to Ms Hunt demanding payment.

At about 8.20am he was seen leaving his address again - still wearing the mask as well as a pair of blue latex gloves and carrying the gun.

He went to Mr Gooding's house and tried to force the front door but damaged the locking mechanism. He then shouted that if Ms Hunt did not open it he would 'blast it with a gun.'

The court was told Mr Goucher climbed over the top of the garage to meet him on the doorstep, where Snarey threatened to shoot and kill him if he did not open the door - and then fired the gun close to his head.

"When I saw the gun I thought I was going to die," Mr Goucher said in evidence.

READ MORE: Swindon neighbour in clown mask 'fired gun in row over debt'

Mr Goucher said he was temporarily blinded and deafened by the blast and stumbled down the driveway, holding onto a parked caravan to guide him out onto the road.

Snarey walked back home shortly afterwards and within minutes armed police and a helicopter were at the scene and he was arrested the  jury heard.

In evidence, Snarey claimed he had not made any threats to either of the victims and that he had worn the clown mask as a joke to amuse and 'wind up' his pet bulldog, 'King,' who was living in Mr Gooding's home at the time.

He said he took the starting pistol only because Mr Goucher had been interested in it and had offered to buy it from him.

The jury rejected his explanation and returned guilty verdicts after deliberating for four hours.