Police have welcomed the sentences given to those involved in Operation Sanctuary.

Det Supt Steve Barron said the results were what they were "hoping for".

He also praised the victims' bravery, saying that without them coming forward, the force "wouldn't be here with this number of convictions".

In a statement, he stressed that the women were targeted "because of their vulnerabilities" and encouraged other victims of abuse to come forward.

He added:

A detective who investigated the Newcastle grooming gang says the abusers underestimated their victims' desire to get justice.

Det Supt Steve Barron said: "These offenders targeted these women because of their vulnerabilities.

"They hugely underestimated their strength and determination to seek justice, they thought no one would believe them.

Image source, Northumbria Police

"We believed them, as did the jury. I have spoken to some of these victims and they are lovely people.

"They have had a tough life and to then go through courts is so difficult for them. "It has just been brilliant to see how their bravery is now showing justice."

Five more men were jailed yesterday for their part in the drugs and grooming ring that forced young women to have sex in Newcastle.

• Eisa Mousavi, 41, of Todds Nook, was jailed for 20 years for offences including three rapes and conspiracy to incite prostitution.
• Nashir Uddin, 35, of Joan Street, was jailed for 11-and-a-half years for offences including a sex offence and conspiracy to incite prostitution.
• Taherul Alam, 32, of Normanton Terrace, was jailed for eight years for offences including conspiracy to incite prostitution.
• Monjur Choudrey, 33, of Phillip Place, was jailed for five years for offences including conspiracy to incite prostitution.
• Prabhat Nelli - 33, of Sidney Grove, was sentenced to four years for offences including conspiracy to incite prostitution.

Image source, NORTHUMBRIA POLICE

A 13-year-old girl has told how she was "harmed beyond imagination" by what happened to her after 22-year-old Carolann Gallon took her to a party where she became a victim of sexual abuse.

Image source, NCJMedia

Gallon also took another victim to Abdulhamid Minoyee promising her she would be "safe" with him; however, she was later raped.

Gallon is said to have had a "terrible upbringing" and her barrister described her a "classic example of the abused becoming the abuser, the groomed becoming the a groomer".

Today's sentencing is part of a set of trials that have taken place throughout the week.

Sixteen men and one woman have been handed sentences of up to 29 years in jail.

Here's a summary of this week's events.

Fiona Trott
BBC News

These trials have revealed that between 2010 and 2014, groups of men in Newcastle groomed vulnerable girls and women for sex.

Most of them were from Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi backgrounds.

They invited teenagers to parties and plied them with drugs and alcohol.

Today, the court head that Carolann Gallon trafficked two girls who were in care.

One was 13. When interviewed by police she said: "I didn't force them into having sex. They are not kids - they've got their own mind."

She was jailed for six years. Abdhulhamid Minoyee raped a woman with learning difficulties. He's been jailed for 15 years.

Another man is due to be sentenced next week.

Operation Shelter uncovered groups of men in the West End of Newcastle - many of whom were known to each other - who exploited vulnerable young women and girls from 2010 to 2014.

It all began when an "extremely vulnerable" 19-year-old told police she had been raped by Abdul Minoyee.

A police officer took the girl on a tour of the West End to try identify Minoyee's house and car and other places where these "parties" had taken place.

Her information was a red flag - the abuse was on a much bigger scale.

Image source, BBC/Google

Days later the officer's hunch was given added weight when two girls in care reported that they had been repeatedly raped by a group of older Asian men.

The girls were aged 14 and 15. It would lead to a long police investigation which resulted in 17 people being sentenced this week.

You can read the full feature here.

A woman has been jailed as part of Operation Sanctuary for taking girls as young as 13 to grooming parties.

Carolann Gallon, 22, was sentenced to six years and three months after the girls were given booze and drugs and forced to have sex.

Two of her victims were in care at the time.

Image source, NORTHUMBRIA POLICE

It emerged that during Operation Sanctuary, Northumbria Police paid a convicted rapist £10,000 to act as an informant.

While working for the officers, the man known only as XY was arrested for dishonesty, an assault in a mosque, and was questioned about making sexual advances to a 13-year-old girl.

A woman who helped a gang who plied girls with alcohol and drugs and raped or sexually abused them has been jailed.

Carolann Gallon was one of a number of people caught in Operation Sanctuary - the investigation into the sexual abuse of vulnerable girls in Newcastle.

The 22-year-old, of Hareside Court, admitted three counts of trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation and was sentenced to six years and three months in prison.

A man who took part in the abuse, Abdulhamid Minoyee, was sentenced to 15 years.

The 33-year-old, of Gainsborough Grove, had been convicted of rape, sexual assault and the supply of drugs.

Image source, NORTHUMBRIA POLICE

Carolann Gallon is jailed for six years and three months for trafficking victims for sexual exploitation.

Image source, Northumbria Police

Abdulhamid Minoyee, 34, has been jailed for 15 years for rape, sexual assault, and supplying drugs as part of the Operation Sanctuary investigation.

Image source, Northumbria Police

Three-week-old Reggie Young was attacked by a Lakeland terrier-cross at his home in Sunderland.

Megan Paterson
Reporter, BBC Look North

On the night Reggie Yates was killed, his father Ryan had drank eight cans of lager, and he then called a taxi and ordered eight more.

He then fell asleep on the sofa - he was supposed to be looking after Reggie who was in the bouncy chair beside him.

Mr Young didn't wake up until he heard his partner's screams.

She returned home to find her baby son lying lifeless in the living room.

Mr Young was too asleep to wake up.

Megan Paterson
Reporter, BBC Look North

The court heard the dog involved could have been stopped if Ryan Young had been awake, if he hadn't been drinking.

Judge Tim Gittens said Young's alcohol intake that night "significantly intoxicated" him, "if not to the point of stupor, then into a very deep sleep".

He added: "Reggie's care should have been at the centre of your mind. Instead you selfishly made the decision to drink to excess."

Mr Young is now severely depressed and suffers from PTSD as a result of the attack on his son, the court was heard.

The Gazette
Newspaper

A bomb hoax accused has denied threatening to blow up a college, claiming the events were a misunderstanding., external

Image source, THE GAZETTE

More now on the father who has been jailed after his three-week-old son was killed by a dog.

Ryan Young, 32, had initially denied owning the terrier-type dog but changed his plea at Newcastle Crown Court.

Reggie Young was attacked at his home in Falkland Road, Sunderland, on 20 June 2015 while his father was drunk and asleep.

Young's barrister Caroline Goodwin QC told an earlier hearing Reggie's death had been an "emotionally devastating chapter" in the family's lives.

A father who was drunk and fell asleep before his pet dog killed his baby son has been sentenced to 21 months in prison.

Reggie Young was three weeks old when he died after being bitten by a small terrier-type dog at his home in Sunderland in June 2015.

His father Ryan Young failed to prevent the attack.

The dog was later destroyed.

Geordie duo Ant and Dec have expressed their condolences on Twitter after broadcasting legend Mike Neville past away on Wednesday.

There are delays of up to 15 minutes between Meadow Well and South Gosforth.