An Australian man faces up to 20 years in jail after he packed a suspicious 80-year-old “antique” in his luggage while attempting to fly to Lebanon.

Antonios Moussa was at Sydney Airport on December 28 when an X-ray machine revealed he was carrying a suspicious item in his checked baggage.

The 39-year-old’s lawyer Stephen Stanton described to a court that the man had packed an “inoperable” antique. According to police, the X-ray showed Moussa’s packed antique was a disassembled shotgun along with ammunition.

Moussa was then stopped from boarding his flight to Lebanon and was questioned over the weapon before being arrested and held in remand over the new year period.

The man’s lawyer claimed the firearm was around 80 years old and inoperative as it had a “broken stock”, AAP reported.

Police allege the firearm was not registered to Moussa, however the man’s legal team told the court the firearm itself was registered.

“It will be shown ... that the gun was inoperative. It had a ... broken stock,” his lawyer told the court.

“It’s an old gun, about 80 years old.”

According to AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Dom Stephenson, the weapon allegedly found in Moussa’s bag had the potential to cause real harm.

“There was allegedly an initial claim that the weapon was a ‘drenching gun’ used for agricultural farming,” he said.

“However, the AFP subsequently determined the weapon was a shotgun broken down into two parts.”

Moussa now faces up to 20 years in jail if he is found guilty of breaching weapons trafficking laws.

However, his lawyer said while the facts of the alleged offence are “troubling”, he believes the matter will be straightforward.

Judge Hugh Donnelly accepted Moussa doesn’t pose a risk to the community but warned jail could be a real possibility due to the nature of the charges.

“A custodial sentence is likely in this case because of the way the offence is framed,” the judge told the court.

- NZ Herald