A man accused by Zimbabwe of leading 70 suspected mercenaries pleaded guilty today to attempting to possess dangerous weapons, a charge which could bring a jail sentence of 10 years.
Mr Simon Mann, appearing in court, also entered a limited guilty plea to a second charge of purchasing weapons, but insisted that the deal never went through.
Mr Mann, a former member of Britain's elite SAS special forces unit, has been identified as the leader of a group of 70 men who have been detained since March in Zimbabwe on charges of plotting a coup in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea.