A THUG has been found guilty of shooting a prison officer dead in a revenge attack after he exposed the killer’s affair with a female jail guard.
Lenny Scott was gunned down outside a gym in Skelmersdale, Lancashire, by Elias Morgan in an “act of retaliation”.
Elias Morgan has been convicted of murdering a prison officer[/caption]
Lenny Scott was gunned down and killed outside a gym[/caption]
He had exposed one of his alleged killer’s affair with prison officer Sarah Williams[/caption]
The dad had lived in fear for his “family’s life” after he was threatened by prisoner Morgan over a four-year period.
Footage showed the killer stalking Lenny outside the gym before opening fire.
Six shots pierced the darkness before Morgan fled on an electric bike to a getaway van nearby.
He has now been found guilty of murder following a trial at Preston Crown Court.
A second man, Anthony Cleary, 29, was found not guilty of murder and manslaughter.
Jurors heard Morgan, 35, wanted to get revenge after Lenny exposed an illicit relationship involving him and a female officer at HMP Altcourse.
The prison guard had discovered a phone in Morgan’s cell that revealed the sexual affair with Sarah Williams.
When Lenny refused a £1,500 offer to “lose” the phone, Morgan responded with “powerfully made” threats.
This included Morgan allegedly telling him: “I’ll bide my time, but I promise I will get you” before making a gun gesture.
Four days after the phone was seized, he made a 101 call to police claiming a car had been “sat outside my house all weekend”.
Lenny told the operator in March 2020 a prisoner had been “threatening my family”.
When she asked who had made the threat, he replied: “Elias Morgan. He’s described my family and me to a tee, described my house.”
Lenny said the threats came after he had “nicked” Morgan “for a phone”.
The prison officer said: “Until I ‘drop’ that, he said they’re staying there and they’re just going to constantly be around my house, and I’m just in fear for my family’s life.”
On February 8 last year, Lenny was outside a gym when he was approached by a gunman in a high-vis jacket who shot him once in the head and five times to the body.
Wendy Logan, deputy head of CPS North West‘s complex casework unit, said: “Lenny Scott was a devoted father who had bravely upheld his duty when working as a prison officer by reporting an illicit phone he found in Elias Morgan’s cell in 2020.
“He did so in the face of attempts at bribery and also threats and intimidation by Morgan – and his commitment to public service will not be forgotten.
“Morgan – driven by revenge and believing he was above the law – carried out a cold-blooded murder.
“We were determined to deliver justice and see Morgan brought to book for his evil crime – and our case set out in clear terms how he planned and carried out his callous act.
“Our thoughts remain with Lenny’s family – particularly his three young children – and all those who cared for him as they deal with his loss.”
Morgan will be sentenced on Tuesday.
Morgan will be sentenced for murder on Tuesday[/caption]