A Cumbrian man has been jailed for 15 years following the largest-ever seizure of firearms in the north west.

Paul Holmes, 50, had admitted 14 separate firearms offences.

Prosecution of the south Cumbrian man, of Station Road, Holme, was the result of a joint operation led by TITAN (the north west’s regional organised crime unit), assisted by Cumbria Police and the National Crime Agency (NCA).

TITAN began to investigate and observe Holmes after information suggested he held illegal firearms. It transpired that he had lived in Australia for a number of years but he returned to Cumbria after being convicted of firearms offences.

TITAN detectives were joined in November of last year by search teams from Cumbria Police and officers from the NCA, to execute warrants at the defendant’s home address, a farm outbuilding in Milnthorpe and a garage in Devonshire Road, Morecambe (both also owned by Holmes).

Officers found a well-equipped workshop containing various machines and tools believed to be capable of use in manufacturing firearms, and there was equipment for use in reloading bullets and two handguns.

The haul of illegal firearms and ammunition seized included sawn-off shotguns, rifles, a handgun, disassembled shot guns together with bullets of varying calibres.

Joanne Edwards, Detective Superintendent at TITAN, said: "This massive haul of weapons posed a direct threat to our communities and I am sure it is shocking to some that such a large amount of guns and ammunition were recovered in a quiet rural location.

“TITAN’s mission is to tackle serious and organised criminals that have the greatest impact in the north west. Many of TITAN’s operations have a focus in the inner cities of Liverpool and Manchester, but this seizure just highlights that the threat of organised crime spreads across all our communities.

“This is the largest seizure of firearms that TITAN has made since its inception in 2008 and represents a nationally significant find. The communities of Cumbria and the north west are far safer tonight now that Paul Holmes has been imprisoned.”

Andrew Slattery, Detective Superintendent at Cumbria Police, added: “I am very pleased that, through our joint policing efforts, we have been able to deal effectively with this particular threat and remove illegally held firearms from circulation.

"The imprisonment of Holmes should serve as a deterrent to others who are tempted to become involved in organised crime – if you commit organised crime in Cumbria you will identified and you will be prosecuted.”