Hitman Mark Fellows, 45, who murdered child killer Kyle Bevan in his cell at HMP Wakefield, is set to spend the rest of his whole life sentence in near-total isolation — with prison officers warned he has ‘nothing to lose’
A contract killer who gunned down two gangsters before stabbing a child murderer to death in prison is thought to be among 60 inmates living in segregation and isolation until their dying day behind bars.
Mark Fellows, 45, who previously shot dead “gangland kingpins” Paul Massey and John Kinsella, was last week convicted alongside David Taylor, 64, and Lee Newell, 57, of the murder of 33 year old Kyle Bevan at HMP Wakefield following a trial at Leeds Crown Court.
The three men conspired to kill Bevan, who had been serving a life sentence for the murder of his two year old stepdaughter Lola James at the home they shared in Wales. The court heard earlier this month how Bevan was stabbed 25 times in his cell with a makeshift weapon on November 4 last year.
CCTV footage from within the prison captured the three killers following Bevan into his cell, before departing less than five minutes later — and Bevan was never seen alive again.
Fellows was also caught on camera checking on the body to make sure it had not been discovered before prison officers found Bevan dead in his cell the following morning. Fellows had been serving a whole life order at the notorious jail, dubbed “Monster Mansion” for housing some of Britain’s most dangerous criminals, for the cold-blooded killings of Paul “Mr Big” Massey and Liverpool gangland enforcer John Kinsella.
Massey was gunned down with an Uzi sub-machine gun outside his own home in July 2015. Then in May 2018, Fellows shot Kinsella — who had carried Massey’s coffin at his funeral — as he walked his dog with his pregnant partner in Rainford. Fellows was handed his second whole life order at Leeds Crown Court earlier this month, meaning he will never have the chance of freedom again, reports the Liverpool Echo.
A prison source told the ECHO that they expect officers to remain on “high-alert” as Fellows has “nothing to lose” while behind bars, though they noted that Fellows poses a greater risk to fellow inmates than to prison staff.
He is likely to be kept separate from other prisoners, under close supervision within a specialist unit. These small, dedicated centres are found across six high-security prisons throughout the country and house some of the most dangerous criminals within the entire prison system.
Since their establishment in 1998, the centres house around 60 of the country’s most dangerous offenders, the majority of whom have been convicted of serious violent crimes. This means Fellows will have minimal human interaction and will spend the bulk of his time in isolation.
The maximum-security inmate is likely to be receiving the bare legal minimum of prison privileges, much like Southport killer Axel Rudakubana. It is believed that the legal minimum still allows him to purchase goods from the prison canteen using money either earned while inside or sent by relatives, though he spends little time outside his cell and has items brought directly to him.
The decision on whether to grant Fellows even the minimum level of privileges may be shaped by the fact he has yet to target a prison officer.
Mark Fairhurst, national chair of the Prison Officers’ Association, told the ECHO: “Prison officers continue to operate in one of the most violent and hostile working environments in the world, managing some of the most dangerous individuals in society.
“This case underlines the risks they face from prisoners who have nothing to lose, having been sentenced to die in custody. Mr Fellows will spend the rest of his life in the high-security estate, largely within a close supervision centre due to his sustained violent behaviour.
“Staff will continue to face serious risks as they protect the public by securely holding offenders determined to act on violent impulses. Their professionalism and commitment in doing so deserve recognition.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Prisons must be places of control and punishment to protect the public. While we cannot comment on individual prisoners, we’re introducing a taskforce to reduce violence across the high security estate and investing an extra £35 million this year to bolster physical security. That’s on top of over £40 million already invested in prison security.”