A BODYBUILDER who kept more than 800 rounds of deadly assault rifle ammunition at a mansion in a quiet Langbank street has been jailed for eight and a half years.

Parmdeep Singh, 34, kept bullets for Kalashnikov machine guns at a £600,000 five bedroom house in Langbank.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard how Singh also operated a cultivation plant which netted the keep-fit fanatic’s gangland bosses £1.5m per year.

The cannabis factory was in a purpose-built windowless outhouse in the grounds of Singh’s home.

He spent £30,000 on equipment to grow the drug, fitting an elaborate fan system to mask the pungent smell, and police say the operation is one of the most profitable they have ever discovered.

As Singh appeared yesterday for sentencing, defence advocate Dale Hughes told Judge Lord Glennie that his client had mental health problems and had turned to illegal activity after an unnamed Scots crime boss threatened him.

But Lord Glennie told Singh: “You stored ammunition for military grade weapons and cultivated drugs.

“The most appropriate sentence available to me for such serious offences is the imposition of custody.” Singh, of Langbank, had pled guilty in November at Paisley Sheriff Court to the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.

He also admitted operating an enterprise which produced an illegal drug.

At previous proceedings, the court heard how Singh’s criminal operation came to light during a separate police probe into the theft of gym equipment from a health club in the north of England.

Singh was thought to have stored the equipment at his home and detectives raided the property in June 2012.

They found a cannabis farm, a shotgun hidden under a sheet in his bedroom cupboard and 825 bullets hidden around the property.

After his arrest, Singh denied the charges for more than two years until he went on trial at Paisley Sheriff Court last month.

He initially blamed a cousin now living in India but pled guilty after a jury heard a recording of an interview with detectives where he admitted the drugs, gun and ammunition belonged to him.

During yesterday’s proceedings, Singh’s QC said his client had suffered mental health problems throughout his life and came into contact with a gangland figure who took advantage of his weak character.

Mr Hughes added: “He was extremely naive and exploited because of his vulnerability.

“He was prevailed upon to store the illegal items by a gentleman who issued threats about what he would do to his family if Mr Singh did not comply with his request.

“This man was an ex-army man. He had a military background. He was groomed by this man.” Mr Hughes also told the court that several people in the Sikh community had considered Singh to be a worthwhile member of society, and urged the judge to show leniency.

However, Lord Glennie said: “The sheriff at Paisley sent this case to the high court because he felt his sentencing powers were not adequate enough to deal with a case of this nature.

“I agree with him.”