Five sentenced for assisting brothers who murdered

Levi Kent, 22, was stabbed to death in Gosport

Five people have been sentenced for helping two brothers avoid arrest after the pair murdered a drug runner.

Levi Kent, 22, was stabbed to death in Gosport, Hampshire, in November 2023 after he refused to give Aiden West, 25 and Tommy West, 18 , credit for cocaine.

The brothers were given life sentences at Portsmouth Crown Court on Tuesday and Tommy West's father Peter West was given two years for assisting his son.

At the same court, their mother Joanne West was sentenced to 15 months and Sarah Flynn and Liam Savage were sentenced to 12 months for assisting an offender.

Any time that they have already spent in prison will count towards their sentences.

Tommy West stabbed Mr Kent six times, a post mortem confirmed

The court heard how Tommy and Aiden West planned to rob Mr Kent after he refused to defer payment for cocaine.

They met him behind shops in Nobes Avenue in the early hours of 24 November.

Tommy West was armed with a knife, while Aiden West was watching nearby.

Mr Kent was stabbed in his car by Tommy West and crashed into a wall a short distance away.

The victim began to run away but he was chased by the pair.

Mr Kent was pronounced dead in hospital and a post-mortem examination revealed he had sustained six stab wounds, including one fatal wound to the heart.

Aiden West, of Tudor Close, was sentenced to 28 years imprisonment for murder and a concurrent six years for robbery at Portsmouth Crown Court.

His half-brother Tommy West, of Fisgard Road, was jailed for 21 years for murder, plus concurrent sentences of five years for robbery and one year for possessing a knife in a public place.

Aiden West was jailed for 28 years

Peter West 43, of Wimpson Lane in Southampton, and Michael Figgins, 64, St Ann’s Crescent in Gosport, collected the offenders in a car after the attack.

They were both found guilty of assisting Peter's son Tommy to dispose of his clothes.

Peter West appeared in court on Tuesday and was jailed for two years, while Michael Figgins will be sentenced in November.

Sarah Flynn, 36, of James Close in Gosport, admitted putting Tommy West's blood-stained clothing in a communal bin.

Joanne West, 45, arranged a taxi to take her sons from the crime scene to the home of Liam Savage, 38, in Harbour Tower, where he admitted to providing them with a safe haven.

Mark Phillips, 56, of Gilbert Close in Gosport was given a six month suspended sentence for perverting the course of justice after he deliberately lied to police about Ms West's taxi booking.

Mr Justice Bowes said in his sentencing remarks on Wednesday the offences were committed "against the tragic backdrop of the appalling and savage murder of Levi Kent".

Sarah Flynn, Liam Savage, Joanne West and Peter West (L-R) have all been jailed for assisting an offender

When addressing each of the defendants he said that they all "knew something really bad had happened" when they took actions to help the brothers.

Mr Bowes said to Joanne West that "any mother is going to feel a great deal of pressure if one of her children is in trouble".

He added that her slightly longer sentence was because she "knew it was really serious" and she still "took steps to assist" her sons.

Mr Bowes said there was "an element of orchestration" in Joanne West's actions and described her as "an instigator".