Father jailed for son's Christmas kidnap plot

The man kidnapped his son on Christmas Eve and was stopped on his way to the Eurotunnel

A father who attempted to kidnap his son at Christmas has been jailed for six years.

The man, who cannot be identified, used a tracking device to follow his ex-partner's moves before taking their six-year-old son from her car.

Police intercepted the man's car southbound on the A1 and found a one-way ticket for the Eurotunnel.

He denied wrongdoing but was found guilty of kidnapping a child and common assault against his ex.

Northumbria Police said the man made "meticulous plans" including buying a disguise, changing his vehicle's licence plates and making test runs of his escape route.

On Christmas Eve he followed his ex to a shopping centre, blocked her car in and grabbed their child, the force said.

The mother raised the alarm and police in North Yorkshire stopped the man's car.

'Audacious and devious'

The boy's distraught mother immediately raised the alarm and officers from Northumbria Police swiftly launched an investigation.

And with the help of colleagues from North Yorkshire Police, the man's vehicle was soon intercepted on the A1 making its way south. When the car was searched officers found the ticket for the Eurotunnel.

The man must also serve an extended licence period of a further three years.

Det Con Garry Cousins said it was a "shocking case" and the man had acted in "such a selfish, audacious and devious manner".

He said: "Instead of allowing his child to enjoy Christmas with his mother, he hatched a detailed and disturbing plot to kidnap him right from under her nose, and take him abroad on what is possibly the most exciting day of the year for a child - all over his anger with the family court system.

"Not only did he put his child in danger by taking the law into his own hands, he breached the trust and privacy of his ex by placing a device on her car, tailing and tracking her movements and this is absolutely abhorrent and bordering on mental abuse."