A man sent a suspicious package containing white powder to the DVLA headquarters in Swansea with notes telling the reader to "run or hold their breath". The substance was later found to be talcum powder.
Gary Preston, 63, sent written threats to various business and educational establishments in 2013, and suggested the contents could be deadly. As well as sending a package to the DVLA, he sent packages to Westfield Shopping Centre in London, Freeport Shopping Centre in Essex, Transport for London, and a Premier Inn close to Stansted Airport.
Notes were also sent to St Michaels Primary School, Lyons Hall Primary School, and Notley High School in Essex, Anglia Ruskin University, Essex County Council, and other businesses in Braintree such as Vision Express, Coral, Specsavers, Barclays and Costa Coffee.
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The defendant had no links to any of the establishments, and there was no apparent motive for sending the letters. When Preston was arrested for a separate offence in July 2020, police established him as the main suspect. His DNA and fingerprints matched that found on the packages and he was arrested in September 2020. Handwriting analysis confirmed that he had written some of the notes.
Preston, of Haverhill, Suffolk, was charged with sending a hoax substance or other thing, and pleaded guilty to all charges. Following a cold case review, Preston's DNA from a jacket was then also linked to an indecent assault at knifepoint against a woman in Rainham, Essex, in 1988. He pleaded guilty to indecent assault and possessing a knife.
The defendant was jailed at Woolwich Crown Court on Thursday for nine years and six months, and placed on the sex offenders' register for life.
Following the hearing, Nick Price, Head of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said: “The actions of Gary Preston caused severe disruption, concern and fear at a wide range of public establishments given the suspicious nature of his actions. Following a cold case review, his DNA was then linked to an indecent assault at knifepoint from 1988. I hope this conviction and sentence provides some reassurance that this man has now been brought to justice.”
Hannah Wilkinson, head of ERSOU’s Counter Terrorism Policing unit, said: “By targeting places such as primary schools and airports, there’s no doubt that Preston had set out to cause as much distress and worry as he could. It is also clear that, by sending these packages to more than 20 organisations across the country, he had spent significant time planning and attempting to cover his tracks. ERSOU’s detectives continued to track the investigation and as soon as new evidence became available, our teams were able to step up enquiries once more. It’s a positive outcome that Preston will now spend a significant spell behind bars.”
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