A passer-by discovered an illegal handgun and live ammunition on waste ground in Pembroke.

The 9mm semi-automatic pistol was found wrapped in plastic, next to six Luger bullets, on a grass verge in the Curving Avenue and Middleton area at 12.45 p.m. on Friday.

A search of the area was carried out shortly after the discovery.

Police ballistic experts are expected to carry out detailed tests on the weapon and bullets in a bid to discover whether or not it had been used in a crime.

A Police spokesman said it was too early to say if the gun, which was in a rusted state and had been lying in undergrowth for some time, had been fired recently.

He said extensive tests would be able to determine the gun's recent history.

Even in its deteriorated condition, Police were concerned that the weapon could have been found by a child.

The pistol and bullets were found in an area where less than two years ago a Pembroke man was killed by a gunshot.

James Cyrus Caines, 28, was shot by a handgun in the Curving Avenue area in July 1996. It is not known what calibre of weapon was used in the killing but the pistol was never found.