A crime family snared in raids which required the specialist assistance of bomb disposal experts has been jailed for more than 35 years.
The Taits were arrested back in April last year as part of Operation Venetic – the most significant clampdown on serious and organised crime the country has ever seen.
As part of the investigation, searches were carried at properties connected to the family in Byker, Kenton and Cowgate – a haul of weapons – including a home-made hand grenade and Class A drugs worth in excess of £125,000 were recovered.
Thomas Tait Snr was arrested following a search of his Kenton home where officers found a Glock pistol, two kilos of Cocaine. His son, Thomas Tait Jnr, was arrested shortly after showing up at the property.
Later that evening, a further search was conducted at the home of Tait Snr’s mother- Anne-Marie Glendenning. A sports bag containing a hand grenade, a semi-automatic Stribog Carbine, a Sig Sauer pistol, a Glock pistol and approximately 300 rounds of ammunition was found inside a wardrobe in her Byker flat.
The 63-year-old told officers the bag belonged to her 21-year-old grandson Daniel, who had left it there for safe-keeping, claiming it was full of clothes.
A search of his home led officers to approximately 15 kilos of mixing agent and a hydraulic press, which was also seized.
Another man, David Nixon, was later arrested in connection with the conspiracy. During the course of the investigation £15,000 cash and 10 kilos of mixing agent were seized and linked to the 27-year-old.
Thanks to the hard work and dedication of all of those involved, an overwhelming amount of evidence was presented before the courts during a series of hearings and all five defendants pleaded guilty.
Today (Friday), four of the criminal group were jailed at Newcastle Crown Court, with Glendenning due to be sentenced at a later date.
Speaking after the sentencing Detective Chief Inspector Paul Woods, from Northumbria Police’s Priority and Organised Crime Team (POCT) said: “This is an excellent result for the Force. These sentences reflect the serious nature of the crimes committed by the Taits and their associates and I am pleased they are behind bars, where they belong.
“The Taits thought they were untouchable – but thanks to the hard work and unrelenting efforts of our officers and staff, their illicit business has been dismantled and our communities already made safer.
“I would like to reiterate that serious violence and illegal weapons have no place in our neighbourhoods.
“Thankfully in this area it is very rare for criminals to acquire firearms of this nature and the public can be assured that whenever we suspect illegal firearms are in the hands of criminals our dedicated teams will waste no time in seizing and destroying them – and taking robust action against those in their possession.
“Under the regional banner of Operation Sentinel, and the national banner of Operation Venetic, we are working round the clock to eradicate organised crime from our communities.”
Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner, Kim McGuinness, said: “Organised crime groups are very much in our sights in Northumbria. We want to catch those at the top who are in charge and put a complete stop to them.
“Serious organised crime includes county lines, human trafficking and drugs – these are all issues which prey on the vulnerable and cause misery to the lives of others.
“Families like this have to be stopped and Northumbria Police has worked tirelessly to disrupt this family’s activities and ensure they are behind bars. Hard work and dedication has paid off and I’m delighted at today’s news – it’s a relief that those responsible can’t cause exploitation and suffering anymore.”
She added: “It’s not just about tackling gangs after the event, far from it. In our region we are focused on getting upstream of crime – we want to prevent people being drawn into gangs in the first place and our Violence Reduction Unit will continue to support Northumbria Police in this – it’s a very important area of work for me.”
Thomas Tait Sr, 48, of Orchard Green, Newcastle, pleaded guilty to Possessing Class A drugs with intent to supply and possession of a firearm and was jailed for five years and three months.
His mother, Ann-Marie Glendenning, 63, of Northumberland Terrace, Byker, pleaded guilty to three counts of possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition and will be sentenced at a later date.
Tait’s eldest son Thomas, 23, of Saffron Place, Walker, admitted possession of class A drugs with intent to supply and was sentenced to four years behind bars.
His brother Daniel Tait, 21, of Rennington Place, Newcastle, admitted possessing Class A drugs with intent to supply, three counts of possession of a firearm and possessing ammunitionand was jailed for 11 years.
Their associate, David Nixon, 28, of Chase Meadows in Blyth, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess a firearm and being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs and was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment.
Content courtesy of Northumbria Police.
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