A Norfolk man accused of owning lethal 'zombie knives' that are now illegal following a change in the law has had his case discontinued.

Connor Cairney had previously pleaded not guilty at Norwich Magistrates Court in April this year to possessing an offensive weapon in a private place.

The court had been told the 22-year-old disputed that two weapons seized by police at his flat at Hamilton Road in Cromer on July 27 last year fell into the classification of so-called ‘zombie knives’.

A spokesman for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has revealed that the case has now been discontinued.

The spokesman said: "We have a duty to keep all cases under review.

“After receiving further information about the knives we decided the case no longer met our legal test and it was discontinued.”

The Offensive Weapons Act was updated last July making it illegal to possess certain dangerous weapons - even in your own home.

Weapons banned include knuckle-dusters, telescopic truncheons, curved swords, death stars and zombie knives.

The ban specifies a zombie knife has a cutting or serrated edge and "images or words that suggest it is to be used for the purpose of violence".