A man who threatened to wreck a Lookers dealership with a mallet has been convicted of common assault and disorderly behaviour.

Belfast Magistrates' Court was told that 33-year-old Darren McAllister turned up at Lookers' Charles Hurst motor park in Boucher Road last September asking to speak to a mechanic who worked on his car.

The vehicle had failed its MoT test the previous day, with McAllister claiming wheel nuts were not on properly and a seatbelt was twisted.

It was alleged that he took a mallet out of a bag and set it on a desk in front of one member of staff, and that he spoke of going "nose to nose" with a manager.

At a second Charles Hurst site he allegedly shouted that he would wreck the showroom, said the prosecution.

McAllister denied having a mallet with him, insisting that all he had been carrying was an umbrella due to the stormy weather, and said he went to the showroom due to concerns that his children would be travelling in a car that may be dangerous.

The defendant said a full check could not have been carried out before he bought the unspecified car, and claimed he sat down at a member of staff's desk and said to him: "You could have killed my kids. Who did the work on my car?"

District Judge Ken Nixon convicted McAllister of assault, disorderly behaviour and adjourned the case for sentencing, reports the Belfast Telegraph.