An SAS sniper has denied a pistol and more than 300 rounds of ammunition found in his bedroom were his.

Sergeant Danny Nightingale, 38, said he had not been given the Glock 9mm pistol by an Iraqi national while on operations there in 2007.

The father-of-two also told the court martial in Bulford, Wiltshire, he had not stored 338 rounds of ammunition left over from training sessions under his bed.

Sgt Nightingale told the court martial he had no memory of receiving the weapon, as a result of a brain injury he suffered in 2009.

William Clegg, QC, defending, asked Sgt Nightingale to explain the account he gave to police in 2011 following a search of a house he shared with another SAS man, known only as Soldier N.

He told police he had been given the pistol by the Iraqi and the ammunition had accumulated over time from training sessions at his UK base.

"I have no physical or tangible memory," Sgt Nightingale told the court martial board. "I have no recollection of receiving the gun.

"However, hindsight of seeing statements etcetera, I now know Soldier N had told me he had been given a pistol and that he had ammunition there.

"But in the same breath I appreciate I do have a memory issue and so I could put it down to that somehow ... I received something."

Sgt Nightingale, of Crewe, Cheshire, has pled not guilty to a charge of possession of a prohibited firearm and ammunition. The court martial continues.