A TEENAGER who claimed he killed his 15-year-old lover after paying more than £2,000 to keep their relationship quiet has been found guilty of murder.

Matthew Mason, 19, of Ash Lane, Ollerton denied deliberately killing Alex, saying instead he had lost control, despite admitting hitting him with a wrench 15 times in secluded woodland in Ashley on December 12, 2019.

The jury didn't believe Mason's account and after more than nine hours of deliberation, the foreperson returned a majority 10-2 guilty verdict, as the killer sat quietly sobbing in the dock.

Just before lunch on Thursday, January 7, the 12-person jury provided His Honour Judge Everett, The Honourary Recorder of Chester, with a note to say they couldn't all come to an agreement on a verdict after considering all the evidence.

Having provided them with a direction for a majority verdict, Judge Everett thanked the jury for their efforts, after they returned with the guilty verdict just over an hour later.

Northwich Guardian:

Mason used this spanner to hit his victim 15 times

During the month long trial at Chester Crown Court, it was revealed the pair had been in an intimate relationship which Mason tried to keep secret, including from his girlfriend.

The Young Farmer, an agricultural engineering student at Reaseheath College, told the court he had been in a relationship with Caitlyn Lancashire for about two years before Alex told her Mason had sent him an explicit video.

Mason said he had been struggling to sleep in the weeks leading up to the killing and that he ‘did start to feel suicidal’ – admitting he was worried friends ‘wouldn’t accept me if I was gay’.

The court heard Mason had searched the internet for phrases including ‘what would happen if you kicked someone down the stairs’ and ‘everyday poison’ – but he claimed this was for his own suicide attempt and accused Alex of being a ‘bit of a bully’.

Mason claimed that Alex had asked for £50 to stop him putting explicit images of him on social media, and that he eventually ended up borrowing money from friends to give the teenager more than £2,000.

The court heard that Mason picked up Alex on December 12 in his Renault Clio and drove to the remote woodland with the wrench concealed up his right sleeve.

Northwich Guardian:

Mason was arrested while driving his Renault Clio in Staffordshire the following day

Hitting Alex 15 times, Mason also struck heavy blows to the back of his head as he lay motionless and face down on the ground.

After driving away from the woods, Mason met friends in the Red Lion pub in Pickmere before heading to the Golden Pheasant at Plumley to meet other Young Farmers Club members.

Mason will be sentenced at a later date, which is yet to be announced.

Speaking after the verdict, Alex’s family said: “Our son Alex was a wonderful, gentle, loving, kind, caring, respectful boy who loved life and lived life to the full. His precious life was cut short all too soon at the hands of Matthew Mason.

“Mason admitted killing Alex from the outset of this trial but still felt the need to put us through the trauma of this trial in an attempt to minimise his sentence. He never once considered the pain it would put our family through or indeed his own family.

“We have never come across a more selfish, cold and calculating person.

“Mason has attempted to blame Alex and discredit his name throughout this trial and thankfully the jury were able to see through his web of deceit.

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank the jury for coming to the right decision.

“We would also like to thank Detective Inspector Nigel Reid and his team of officers from Cheshire Constabulary for all their hard work over the last 12 months and in particular the family liaison officers, David Edon and Lucy Kennedy, who have supported us through this particularly difficult time.”