Three plead not guilty to assisting an offender

Three people charged with assisting an offender after the murders of two best friends have pleaded not guilty.

Max Dixon, 16, and Mason Rist, 15, were stabbed in a case of mistaken identity in Knowle West, Bristol, on 27 January 2024.

Four teenagers and 45-year-old Antony Snook were found guilty of their murders.

Marcus Williams, 31, from Hartcliffe, Dominic Smith, 25, from Westbury, and Ellie Maddocks, 25, from Westbury, appeared at Bristol Crown Court on Monday. All three are due to stand trial in November.

Snook was jailed for life at Bristol Crown Court in November, while Riley Tolliver, 18, Kodishai Westcott, 17, and two teenagers, aged 15 and 16, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were sentenced for their murders in December.

Tolliver and Wescott were each detained for a minimum of 23 years, while the 15-year-old and 16-year-old were detained for life with minimum terms of 15 and 18 years respectively.

Two men, Bailey Wescott, 23, of Whitchurch, and Jamie Ogbourne, 27, of Hartcliffe, were also jailed in December after admitted two counts of assisting an offender.

A man and a woman, who were charged with assisting an offender last year, are also expected to stand trial in April.

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