The mum of murdered teenager Mason Rist has said she is disgusted after one of her son’s killers posted videos on Instagram from prison. An account, which appears to have been set up by 17-year-old Kodi Wescott, has been posting videos of him gloating about his crimes.
Mason’s mum Nikki Knight said: “The whole thing has made me so angry. How do so many people have access to phones in prison? I know the prison services do their utmost to monitor it and remove them when they find them but I think more needs to be done to stop this happening.
“I haven’t watched the post myself, I can’t bring myself to see what he was saying. But I know it’s out there and for it to be shared around on social media is disgusting enough.
The Daily Mail reports that Ms Rist said she has scheduled an urgent meeting with members of the prison services to discuss the matter. She said: “Surely there is a way to stop internet access or stop them getting data on these phones. I hope some changes can be made.”
A Youth Custody Service spokesperson said: “Our thoughts are with the families of Max Dixon and Mason Rist who deserve better than to see this killer gloating about these awful murders.
“Young offenders are not permitted to access social media or mobile phones and face sanctions if they are caught doing so, including extra time in custody. We are investigating these recordings with the council that runs the Secure Children’s Home where Kodishai Westcott is held and have demanded that social media companies take them down.”
The Instagram account also posted a reel, which combined both videos, and urged followers to share the videos to increase their views. One image on the reel celebrated the fact the first video had been watched 10,000 times, and a caption added: “Love to everyone showing love to my ting… this is only the start trust me”.
BristolLive reported that a source with knowledge of Wescott’s incarceration said after the MoJ was alerted to the account, a phone and a number of vapes were found and confiscated by the authorities at the secure children’s home which is holding Wescott.
Wescott and four others were convicted of the murder of Mason Rist and Max Dixon. The two young boys, who were just 15 and 16 at the time, were killed in a case of mistaken identity in a turf war in south Bristol and had nothing to do with the dispute.
The two boys left Mason’s home to walk to a local takeaway when they were attacked by the gang. During the trial, CCTV footage was show of Wescott armed with a long sword-type knife or machete. Wescott was the only one of the four teens who stabbed both Max and Mason.
The group was on a ‘bloodthirsty’ revenge mission. They had ‘tooled themselves up’ and were driven by 45-year-old Antony Snook to look for those responsible, where they found Max and Mason in Knowle West.
Armed with a machete, zombie knife and baseball bat, they leapt out of the vehicle to attack Mason and Max as they headed out to buy pizza. Both boys were stabbed during a chilling 33-second attack caught on camera and both died later in separate hospitals.
Wescott was convicted and jailed alongside Antony Snook, 45, Riley Tolliver, 18, and two other teenagers, who cannot be named because of their age. All five were handed life sentences.
Wescott does not turn 18 until August, but the judge chose to lift an anonymity order. Speaking at the defendants sentencing, the judge said: “You were part of a group who attacked and killed two boy. The boys you killed were Mason Rist and Max Dixon.
“They were your age. They had done nothing wrong. They didn’t attack the house, they had nothing to do with it. You have heard how much pain you have caused to their families.”