Thomas Hamill and Martin McGilloway, both aged 41 and from the Springvale estate in Dungannon

Officers discovered seven grenades after they stopped a car at Mineveigh Road in Dungannon last May.

Thomas Hamill and Martin McGilloway, both aged 41 and from the Springvale estate in Dungannon, were arrested at the scene.

They later pleaded guilty to possessing the explosives with intent.

On Friday, the men were both sentenced to five years in jail followed by five years on licence.

The court heard how McGilloway had been the driver of a car that had been chased for a short distance in Dungannon on May 28 last year and that, after the car had performed a u-turn, officers witnessed a black hold-all being thrown from the passenger side window.

Prosecuting lawyer Philip Henry told the court that, when the hold-all was retrieved, police uncovered seven improvised explosive devices - including lengths of pipe with fireworks, small arms explosives and shrapnel, or "grenades", to be lit with a fuse.

While there was no forensics to link McGilloway - a single father-of-two - to the bag or its contents, the court heard that he had been the "courier" to transport his friend, Hammill, when they were intercepted.

We will continue to pursue those who seek to bring terror to our communities and put them before the courts.

PSNI Special Crime Branch

Judge McFarland accepted there was no forensics linking McGilloway to the devices, but he found no reason to distinguish between the pair.

He noted that McGilloway had accepted that he had agreed to be the driver of the car and had engaged in a futile attempt to escape police and that, while he may have had a debt to his friend, he had agreed to help transport the devices "from one place to another".

The judge commented: "You may have had a limited role, but I am not dissatisfied you don't fall within the category of being dangerous, so I don't see any distinction between you and Hammill."

Police have released pictures of one of the explosive devices found at the time.

A spokesman for Serious Crime Branch said that the devices were probably intended to attack police or other members of the security forces.

"The nails, nuts and bolts inside would have caused serious injuries or worse to anyone in the vicinity of these devices exploding," he explained.

"There is no doubt that the actions of police in this case have protected their colleagues and the public from the serious injury or death."

The spokesman added: "The sentences imposed show that those individuals convicted of serious terrorist offences can expect to lose their liberty for a considerable time."

^{Contents of an explosive device found by PSNI at Mineveigh Road in Dungannon.}