Max Dixon and Mason Rist’s murderers detained
family handoutsFour teenagers have been jailed for life for the murders of best friends Max Dixon and Mason Rist – who were killed in a case of mistaken identity in January.
Mason, 15, and Max, 16, were stabbed to death with a machete just yards from Mason’s front door in Knowlsey, Bristol.
Riley Tolliver, 18, and Kodishai Wescott, 17, were told they would be detained for at least 23 years. Kodishai Westcott is the first name mentioned since reporting restrictions were lifted.
A 15-year-old boy and a 16-year-old boy (who cannot be named for legal reasons) were sentenced to life imprisonment with minimum terms of 15 and 18 years respectively.
‘A sense of loss and sadness’
On the evening of January 27, Marks and Mason were wrongly identified as those responsible for throwing bricks at a house in Hartcliffe, and were killed.
Four teens discover two best friends The fifth defendant was driving around KnowlesiThe court previously heard that Anthony Snook, 45, was looking for “revenge”.
All five were found guilty of two counts of murder last month following a six-week trial at Bristol Crown Court. Snook was later sentenced to life in prison and sentenced to a minimum of 38 years in prison.
Sentencing the four teenagers on Thursday, Judge May said: “It is impossible to know what prompted the boys to attack Mason and Max.
“Nothing can undo the events of that horrific night. No sentence can alleviate the loss and grief caused to their families.”
During the trial, the jury was told there was a long-standing rivalry between Noel West and Hartcliffe, with previous incidents involving people from “both postcodes”.
“The most terrifying weapon”
The court previously heard that Max and Mason were heading out to buy pizza when they were attacked with “some of the most horrific weapons” police had ever seen.
CCTV cameras captured Snook’s Audi Q2 driving into Ilminster Avenue before four teenagers jumped out of the car, brandishing machetes and baseball bats.
The attack lasted only 33 seconds while Snook waited in the parked car with the lights off.
The teenage defendant then got back into Snook’s car, which turned around and sped off down the street, leaving the injured boy lying in the street.
The trial heard they died within 15 minutes of each other in hospital in the early hours of the next morning, while the killer had eaten a McDonald’s.
