David Hunt (gangster)
| David Hunt | |
|---|---|
| Born |
David Charles Hunt April 1961 Canning Town, London, England |
| Other names | Long Fella, Davey Hunt |
| Occupation | Organised crime boss |
| Founded | 1980s |
|---|---|
| Founded by | David Hunt and brothers |
| Founding location | Canning Town, London, England |
| Years active | 1980s-present |
| Territory | Canning Town/Soho/Essex |
| Membership | David Hunt & brothers, Paul Edmonds, Bill the Bomb, Jimmy Holmes (AKA Horace Silver) |
| Criminal activities | Racketeering, drug trafficking, murder, extortion, bribery, pimping, bookmaking, money laundering, smuggling, fraud, arms trafficking, theft |
| Allies | Clerkenwell crime syndicate, IRA, Yardies |
| Rivals | Various criminal gangs in London |
David Charles Hunt (born April 1961 in Canning Town, London) is an English organised crime boss, linked to violence, fraud, prostitution and money laundering. He heads a gang dubbed The Hunt Syndicate, which has been described as being an extensive criminal empire that has so far evaded significant penetration from law enforcement. Hunt is known in gangland circles as Long Fella due to his height of 6ft 5 inches.
A self described property tycoon, Hunt has been described by Metropolitan Police sources as being "too big to bring down". He became a close friend and associate of Reggie Kray, visiting him in prison in 2000 just prior to his death. He was the owner of "Hunt's Waste Recycling" in Dagenham, which during the nearby 2012 Olympics closing ceremony, was the centre of the "largest fire in several years" in London which saw 40 fire engines and over 200 fire fighters attend the scene. Now known as Connect Waste the recycling centre is run by Hunt's long time friend, Phil Mitchell.
Hunt resides at The Morleys, a 7 bedroom mansion in Woodside Green, Great Hallingbury on the Essex/Hertfordshire border, close to Bishop's Stortford. Complete with swimming pool, tennis court, gym and guard dog pen, the mansion was purchased in September 1993 for £600,000 whilst Hunt, who was 32 at the time, was claiming to be working as a scaffolder, scrap metal dealer and bouncer. In 2013, it was revealed that Hunt had failed to declare any income or pay tax between 1982 and 1996, and he was unable to recall in court how he had been able to afford the property.
Hunt was born in 1961 in Canning Town to May (née Wicks) and George Hunt, the youngest of 13 children.
In the mid 1980s, Hunt joined The Snipers street gang who were involved in lorry hijackings in Essex and East London. Six members of his family were already members, with police intelligence reports identifying David and his brother Stephen as two of the six main leaders. He was arrested 7 times during his time with the gang, but witnesses would drop their allegations. In 1986, he was given a nine-month suspended jail sentence for handling stolen goods and possession of a sawn-off shotgun. He then moved into the Soho sex trade, purchasing property that operated as a pornography shop and brothel. Police intelligence also put him at the centre of a criminal network involved in protection rackets at nightclubs and pubs.
...
Wikipedia