Newbiggin grandmother in drugs ring ordered to pay back cash

Diane Wright, of Newbiggin, was at the centre of a large-scale conspiracy which saw her husband and their three grandsons arrested following a series of police raids on Valentine’s Day 2018.

Wright and her family sold highly addictive substances, including cocaine which was often mixed with carcinogenic chemicals such as worming powder and laxatives to maximise profits.

Back in 2021, they were jailed for a combined total of 34 years and a series of complex financial investigations under the Proceeds of Crime Act have been ongoing ever since.

In May this year, a judge at Newcastle Crown Court granted a confiscation order for £33,621 against Wright’s grandson Aaron Stephenson, who fled to Spain during the criminal proceedings and was later extradited and jailed.

And last week, a judge at the same court, granted a confiscation order of just over £120,000 against 64-year-old Wright.

Assets identified included two properties, £10,000 made from the sale of a boat and cash seized during the investigation.

The order brings the end of all proceedings against the family to a close and sees the total amount of assets seized from the investigation to £169,562.

Praising the work, Detective Chief Inspector Chris Riley of Northumbria Police’s Crime Department, said: “Wright and her family made serious money selling illegal drugs which were cut with potentially hazardous chemicals and blighted our communities with threats of violence and unacceptable behaviour.

“Thanks to a comprehensive criminal investigation, they are now all behind bars serving lengthy jail terms, and, thanks to further detailed investigative work, they have now all re-appeared in court and been stripped of their assets.

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“The granting of this final confiscation order marks the end of than five years of complex investigative work and hopefully shows our communities just how committed we are to achieving meaningful results.

“As part of Operation Sentinel, we will continue to tackle organised crime by systematically disrupting their supply chains, dismantling their groups and, through the Proceeds of Crime Act, stripping them of their assets and cash.

“The money seized from Wright will be re-invested back into the community and will help fund a range of grassroots organisations.”