Mark Fellows (hitman)
Mark Fellows | |
|---|---|
| Born | 5 September 1980 |
Mark Fellows (nicknamed "The Iceman") (5 September 1980) is an English hitman convicted of the murders of John Kinsella and Paul Massey,[1] rival enforcers to the Anti A Team criminal network. At the time of his conviction he was one of only 70 prisoners sentenced to a whole life term.[1]
Background
[edit]Fellows lived in Warrington but was originally from Salford.[2]
Murders
[edit]Paul Massey murder
[edit]On 26 July 2015, Massey was shot dead outside his home on Manchester Road, Clifton, by a lone gunman. The killer was reported to have been wearing military style fatigues and carried a weapon "similar to a sub machine gun".[3] Greater Manchester Police offered a £50,000 reward for information pertaining to the killing.[4]
John Kinsella murder
[edit]Kinsella was shot dead on 5 May 2018 near St Helens Linkway in Rainhill as he walked with his pregnant partner Wendy Owen.[5][6] The killers used encrypted EncroChat handsets to co-ordinate the murder.[7][8][6][9]
Trial
[edit]The trial lasted eight weeks, with heavily armed police officers in attendance.[6] His fellow criminal Steven Boyle was also on trial.[6] Boyle was described as Fellows' "brother in arms" and accused of acting as a spotter, watching the victims and providing assistance to the gunman.[6]
During the trial, evidence from a Garmin fitness watch with a GPS function found in Fellows' house was used to show that he had travelled from his home to a field opposite Massey's home.[10]
Conviction
[edit]Fellows was found guilty of the murders of both Massey and Kinsella, but found not guilty of the attempted murder of Owen.[6] Mr Justice William Davis sentenced him to a whole-life term.[6] Boyle was convicted of the murder of Kinsella, but cleared of the murder of Massey and the attempted murder of Owen.[6]
Assault in prison
[edit]In February 2019 Fellows was seriously injured when he was slashed by another prisoner with a weapon believed to have been made from a razor blade.[2] He was attacked in HM Prison Whitemoor and airlifted to hospital.[2]
Appeal of sentence
[edit]He appealed against his sentence on the grounds that it was "excessive", but in July 2019 the appeal was turned down.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Halliday, Josh (18 January 2019). "Mark Fellows: how Salford hitman evaded police for gangland murders". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ a b c Keeling, Neal (25 February 2019). "Paul Massey's killer Mark Fellows back in prison after razor blade attack left him seriously injured". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ "Paul Massey murder: 'Mr Big' case detectives offer £50k reward". BBC News. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ Halliday, Josh. "Paul Massey murder: police offer £50,000 reward for information". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ "Underworld enforcer named as St Helens shooting victim". BBC News. 6 May 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Perraudin, Frances (16 January 2019). "Hitman guilty of murdering Salford 'Mr Big' Paul Massey". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ "Underworld duo 'murdered in gangland feud'". BBC News. 26 November 2018.
- ^ Hamilton, Fiona (2 July 2020). "Hundreds of arrests as police crack phone network used by crime bosses". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460.
His trial was told the hits were co-ordinated using Encrochat on a device which cost £1,500 for a six-month contract and was sold on websites visited by those engaged in crime.
- ^ "'Mr Big' Paul Massey murder: Hitman gets life in jail". BBC News. 17 January 2019. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
- ^ Barnes, Tom (17 January 2019). "Mark Fellows: Gangland hitman jailed for life over murders of 'Mr Big' Paul Massey and John Kinsella". The Independent. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ "Gangland hitman fails in appeal against 'excessive' life sentence". Press Association. 5 June 2019. Retrieved 13 November 2020.