THE man accused of stealing a £3m Shakespeare folio yesterday attempted to carry two guns into court while dressed as Che Guevara.

Police were called to Consett Magistrates’ Court after security staff alerted them shortly after self-styled antiques dealer Raymond Scott arrived for the hearing.

Dressed in olive-green military fatigues, Mr Scott referred to himself as ‘Comandante’, after the Argentine revolutionary.

After he was barred from entering the court, Mr Scott took the air rifle and air pistol – capable of firing pellets – back to the stretch limousine he arrived in.

A spokesman for Durham Police said: “Court officials contacted the police to report concerns regarding the behaviour of a defendant as he made his entrance to the building.

“The matter is being looked into, but at this stage it is unclear whether any offences have been committed.”

Police attended the scene, but no action was taken.

Mr Scott was joined by four supporters, who waved a Union Flag and Cuban flag for waiting photographers and camera crews.

The 52-year-old, of Sandford Close, Manor Grange, Wingate, County Durham, is accused of stealing a first edition of a collection of Shakespeare’s works from Durham University’s library in Palace Green.

In court, he was asked to remove his hat by the court clerk, but refused.

He said: “Would they ask a Jewish man to take off his skull cap or a Sikh to take off their turban?

“It is not as if I am standing with my hands in my pockets.”

He stood in his militia uniform with a beret under his right epaulet and gloves underneath his left, with a packet of his trademark Pot Noodle in one breast pocket and a Havana cigar in the other.

Scott faces a total of six charges, including stealing the book and an alternative charge of handling stolen goods.

He also faces four separate charges of theft and handling stolen goods relating to a driving licence, credit cards and a personal organiser found at an address in Ayton, Washington, Tyne and Wear, last summer. No pleas have been entered, but after the hearing Mr Scott held an impromptu press conference for journalists.

He said: “I could sneak out the back of the magistrates’ court into a rusty old minicab with a blanket over head, but I have nothing to hide. I am innocent.

“This is the next round of the fight. I still haven’t had a chance to defend myself.”