Blyth man whose machine gun components were intercepted at a German airport handed five year sentence

Victor Tuff, 62, pleaded guilty to nine firearms offences at Newcastle Crown Court in February and was handed the five-year sentence at the same court last week.

Northumbria Police searched a large wooden structure at Tuff’s home at Millcroft Court in Blyth and a car parked at his workshop, also in Blyth, after the gun components were seized and discovered several pistols, other gun parts, and live ammunition.

He had not held a firearms licence since 2017. The judge also ordered Tuff to forfeit all the items and pay almost £200.

Detective Constable Ross Charlton said: “We take a strong stance against those who own or attempt to import offensive weapons and have been working with partners both locally and nationally to make sure parcels from overseas are intercepted and seized, and the local police force notified.

“This helps to keep our neighbourhoods safe as it prevents weapons from falling into the wrong hands and means anyone trying to deliberately flout the law will be brought to our attention.

DC Charlton added: “Simply having an offensive weapon in your home is enough to risk prosecution and it will be seized with or without your consent, which is what happened in Tuff’s case.

“On a search of the Tuff’s property and workshop, it was clear there was a haul of suspicious items, most of which turned out to be illegal as he had been without the appropriate licence for a number of years.”