A GETAWAY driver who helped chase down and murder two teen pals in a horrific case of mistaken identity has been jailed.
Max Dixon, 16, and Mason Rist, 15, had popped out to buy pizza when they were unwittingly embroiled in a “postcode rivalry” in the Bristol suburb of Knowle.
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Their killers had wrongly identified them as the culprits of an earlier attack – leading them to “tool up” with an arsenal of “fearsome weapons”.
Antony Snook, 45, led a bloodthirsty hunt for the attackers in his flashy Audi through the dark streets of Bristol.
Chilling CCTV then showed the gang chasing down Max and Mason as they innocently walked down the street together.
Snook has now been jailed for life with a minimum of 38 years after last week being convicted of murder.
Riley Tolliver, 18, and three teenage boys aged 15, 16 and 17, were also found guilty but will be sentenced on another date.
In a victim impact statement, Max’s mum Leanne Ekland fought back tears as she described how she cradled her son’s head in her lap.
She told the court Max managed to open his eyes as he lay dying and told her he “just wanted to go to sleep”.
Recalling the moment she was told her son had died, Leanne added: “I will never be the same again. I screamed and ran out of the room and fell on the floor.
“I’ve never felt pain like it and the pain has stayed with me.”
Mason’s sister Chloe Dore told how she was unable to even touch her brother following his death because he was “evidence”.
She said she saw Mason’s favourite coat “ripped up” and his blood on the pavement, before going into his bedroom “praying he was in there”.
Chloe added: “Mason doesn’t like confrontation. I know he would have been really scared that night, not knowing why this was happening to him.
“He tried to come home, he was so close but he didn’t make it.”
Mason’s mum Nikki Knight described how the horror attack on her son took place outside their home.
Summarising the tribute, prosecutor Ray Tully KC said: “She hopes that Mason will still walk through her door, though she knows that will never happen.
“She, as a mother, feels she failed to protect her son. That is a thought that will stay with her.
“Ultimately, she says when trying to find words to put her emotions and feelings down on paper, it is an impossible task.
“She speaks about the fact she still can’t go into his bedroom because of the feelings she knows she will have, simply being in that room.”
Bristol Crown Court heard the horror unfolded on January 27 amid a postcode “rivalry” between the Knowle West and Hartcliffe areas of Bristol.
Around an hour before Max and Mason died, a house in Hartcliffe had been attacked by masked youngsters hurling bricks through a window and injuring a woman.
At 11pm, Snook, Tolliver and the three teen defendants left the area armed with their stash of weapons.
Snook then drove them from Hartcliffe to Knowle West “on the hunt” for the people they believed were responsible for the attack.
Ray Tully KC, prosecuting, said: “As they drove past Max and Mason walking down the street, they thought they had spotted the people responsible for the earlier attack – or at the very least, people connected to it.
“They were entirely wrong about that. Max and Mason had absolutely nothing to do with any earlier incident and no connection whatsoever with those events.”
The gang jumped out of the Audi and gave chase to the innocent teens, who had popped out to buy pizza.
Both pals attempted to run back towards Mason’s home nearby but were separated during the hunt.
Footage showed the gang speeding off in Snook’s Audi as Max and Mason were left dying on the street.
Tolliver and the 15-year-old boy attacked Mason, while the 16-year-old boy and 17-year-old boy chased Max.
Mason was knifed once in the back and chest – causing “unsurvivable injuries” – while his best friend was stabbed once in the abdomen.
They tragically died within 15 minutes of each other after being rushed to hospital.
Mason and Max’s devastated family’s pay tribute
Max’s family said: “Max was a big character with a happy and joyful look on life. He was funny, kind and caring. He was a huge part of the family and was very popular among his friends. He was full of life and had such a cheeky side, but was always respectful.
“The past six weeks have been emotionally draining. Today’s outcome doesn’t change the fact that two families go home without their boys. But we can now hopefully begin to process and remember them both and the happy memories both families have of Max and Mason.
“Max and Mason have known each other since nursery school and have always been in the same classes. We often joked it was a funny friendship as they were both so different but they bounced off each other and brought out the best in each other.
“We will miss everything about him. We are broken without him but he would want us to carry on and he wouldn’t want anyone to be down.
“We need to thank everyone that’s been involved in our case. We have so much respect for the hard work, dedication and support to our families. There are no words to express how thankful we are to everyone. We will be forever grateful to them.”
While Mason’s family said: “Our family is like a jigsaw puzzle and, with the loss of Mason, it is like a part of our jigsaw is gone forever and will never be complete. Mason was a quiet boy who would never hurt a fly. He was just so lovely and innocent.
“It is impossible to put into words how we feel. This whole process has been incredibly hard and hearing what we have heard, what happened to him, it is horrible to think about Mason’s last moments.
“These dangerous individuals took away our son, brother, nephew, uncle and grandchild and we must now navigate the rest of our lives without our missing puzzle piece.
“From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank everyone worked so hard on this case. The investigation team for being so hard working and dedicated, we appreciate it wasn’t easy working endless hours and under pressure but it is because of you we got this result.
“The family wouldn’t have been able to get through this unbearable time without having the best family liaison officers assigned to us. They have gone above and beyond to ensure we are always updated, guided and supported throughout this awful process.
Speaking after the verdicts, Detective Superintendent Gary Haskins, senior investigating officer at Avon and Somerset Police, said Max and Mason had been going for a pizza when they were fatally attacked in a case of mistaken identity.
He added: “They are beautiful boys, going about their business, in their own community when they were senselessly attacked by the individuals for no reason.
“What we know is that they passed Max when he was walking towards Mason’s house. Then Mason walks out of his house and joins Max.
“The vehicle is passing, they think ‘that’s them, they will do’. They were hunting around Knowle to find people.
“We know they had driven around Knowle two-and-a-half times before they came across these two boys.”
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