Killer gets 45 years for prison officer 'execution'

Elias Morgan killed father-of-three Lenny Scott in an "act of retaliation"

A gangland "executioner" who waited four years to take revenge on a prison officer for seizing a phone from his cell has been jailed for a minimum of 45 years for his murder.

Armed robber Elias Morgan shot father-of-three Lenny Scott six times outside a gym in Skelmersdale, Lancashire, on 8 February 2024.

He planned the killing after investigators at HMP Altcourse in Liverpool discovered evidence Morgan was having a sexual relationship with a female officer called Sarah Williams after the phone was found in March 2020.

Police said Mr Scott had been "assassinated" by Morgan, who was described as a "cold-blooded executioner who took a man's life doing his job".

Det Ch Insp Lee Wilson said Mr Scott was a "man of huge integrity and bravery who did the right thing and who sadly paid the ultimate price by doing so".

Lenny Scott was the father of twin boys and a younger child

Sentencing Morgan to a life term, judge Mr Justice Goose told him he was satisfied the murder was a "revenge killing" for what Mr Scott "did lawfully in his duty as a prison officer".

"The murder has caused profound grief to the deceased's family, his young children and all who knew him," he said.

"He was 33 with most of his life ahead of him.

"He was loved, he was respected and he made them proud."

• Family's statements in full: 'Every day has been a waking nightmare'

Morgan listened to the sentencing at Preston Crown Court quietly after telling his barrister to say "nothing at all" on his behalf.

Caroline Goodwin, KC, representing him, told the court: "My very firm instructions are that I am to offer no mitigation, no submissions and no representations to the court."

Neil and Paula Scott endured weeks of watching the murder trial at Preston Crown Court

The trial heard Morgan had offered Mr Scott £1,500 as a bribe to "lose" the phone when it was found.

When he refused, Morgan made a series of threats which "terrified" Mr Scott, including accurately describing his address and what his partner and twin boys looked like.

At the time Mr Scott told his father, Neil Scott, that Morgan had said to him: "I'll bide my time, but I promise I will get you" before making a gun gesture with his fingers.

During the sentencing hearing Mr Scott's mother Paula Scott spoke to Morgan directly while giving a statement.

She told him: "My son was everything you are not. He was strong, brave, honest, respectful, hardworking, kind, and principled. He stood for what was right.

"You are a violent, inhumane coward. I am hurt, I am angry, and I will never forgive you."

The court also heard from Lucy Griffiths, the ex-partner of Mr Scott and mother of his twin boys.

She described the pain of having to tell the boys, then six, of their father's death and the struggles that followed.

Speaking from behind a screen, she said: "I find letters they write to him hidden under their pillow asking for him to come back. This is so upsetting to find as a mother.

"They have had nightmares about men chasing them with guns because of what's happened."

At the time of the shooting, Mr Scott had been out of the prison service since 2021, when he was dismissed over an incident involving the restraint of a prisoner unrelated to this case.

Morgan had been freed in 2022 but was on bail awaiting trial for offences linked to the discovery of the phone, which saw his former lover Williams jailed for misconduct in a public office.

The trial was due to take place 11 days later.

Morgan, whose previous convictions included his role in an £83,000 bank robbery in which staff were threatened with machetes, waited for 53 minutes outside the gym on Peel Road for Mr Scott to leave a jiu-jitsu training session.

Detectives found he had spent weeks scoping out addresses linked to Mr Scott, including his home in Prescot, Merseyside, the scene of the shooting and another gym the prison officer trained at in the Liverpool suburb of Speke.

There were tears in court from his family as CCTV of the moment Mr Scott was ambushed was played.

Morgan, wearing a high-visibility jacket, can be seen approaching on foot, before raising a self-loading handgun and shooting six times.

Mr Scott collapsed out of frame, and died at the scene.

Morgan was identified as the killer after police realised the gunman had driven to an estate near the scene in Skelmersdale in a Mercedes, which was registered to his mother.

He then walked to a van which had been left nearby the previous evening by his close friend Anthony Cleary, 29.

The van had an electric bike in the back, which Morgan used to ride to the scene of the shooting before returning and using the van to escape Skelmersdale.

He returned and drove the Mercedes back to Liverpool a few days later, detectives found.

Mr Cleary was charged with Mr Scott's murder but was acquitted after he told the jury he had no idea the van or bike were to be used in a shooting.

Anthony Cleary (left) turned on Elias Morgan during their trial and said his friend had called him and confessed to shooting someone

At the time of the shooting Morgan claimed he was "seeing a man about a dog" at a house in Liverpool.

But Mr Cleary turned on his friend in court, and told the jury Morgan called him that night to say he had "done someone in Skem" and to get rid of his phone.

After Morgan's conviction, union chief Mark Fairhurst, chairman of the Prison Officer's Association, told the BBC the "unprecedented" killing had damaged morale.

"It's absolutely horrific and demonstrates to the general public what a risky and unsafe job this really is," he said.

Following the sentencing Lord James Timpson, minister for prisons, probation and reducing reoffending, described Morgan's crime as "truly shocking".

"We know this trial has been deeply distressing for many, and we remain committed to ensuring our brave prison officers get the support they need," he said.

"We will always work hand in hand with police to protect staff and pursue the toughest punishments for those who seek to cause them harm."