Drug dealer inspired by Home Alone booby-trapped home with tripwires and pipe bombs | News UK

He’s no Kevin McAllister, but he tried.

A drug dealer who booby-trapped his house after being inspired by the classic Christmas comedy Home Alone has been jailed for seven years.

Ian Claughton, 60, rigged his home with tripwires and homemade pipe bombs to protect his illicit drugs business from intruders.

As police searched nearby homes connected to Claughton and his ex-wife in May 2024, more than 100 homes were evacuated in Grimethorpe, near Barnsley, South Yorkshire.

They found a series of traps as well as a home-made flamethrower, large quantities of cannabis, amphetamines and cash.

Today, Claughton was jailed for seven years at Sheffield Crown Court by Judge Graham Reeds. His ex-wife, Lesley Claughton, was sentenced to 21 months in prison, suspended for two years.

Opening the trial to jurors last October, prosecutor Helen Chapman said: ‘If you are sitting there thinking that this sounds a little like the film Home Alone, then you would be correct.

‘In fact, that is precisely what Ian Claughton said he was aiming for when he told the police about these devices.’

When police entered one of the ‘heavily protected’ houses, they found a fishing wire running across the length of one of the rooms at knee height, attached to an electrical connector and a battery pack.

Claughton told police the explosives were crow-scarers, used by farmers, which he had inserted into plastic piping and, in one instance, into a bag of paint.

Other devices found in the property consisted of banger fireworks inside piping, sealed with foam, and with wires and a coiled spring.

A stun gun was found behind a fridge-freezer, and a homemade flame-thrower was discovered in a workshop.

Other weapons found at the properties included two high-powered air guns and a crossbow, along with £27,000 sewn into a sofa.

Cannabis plants were found growing in two of the houses, including some in tents in hidden rooms.

Claughton was caught when detectives found a package of imitation firearms ordered from China, set to be delivered to his ex-wife.

The package was opened at Heathrow Airport, and five small silver-and-black folding five-shot revolvers were found.

The court heard this was ordered by Claughton using Lesley’s eBay account.

Claughton pleaded guilty to bringing a realistic imitation firearm into the country, being concerned in the production of cannabis and two counts of possession with intent to supply class B drugs.

He was convicted of three counts of possessing prohibited firearms, possession of criminal property and possession of explosive substances after a trial at Doncaster Crown Court.

Lesley Claughton, 59, was found guilty of bringing a realistic imitation firearm into the country, possessing class B drugs with intent to supply, possession of criminal property and being concerned in the production of cannabis.

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