Defendant in Murder Trial Testifies: ‘I was not in control’

An individual accused of transporting four teenagers to a street where two boys were fatally stabbed has asserted that the claim of his knowing involvement in the assault is “utter rubbish.” Antony Snook, aged 45, is currently facing trial at Bristol Crown Court, alongside four co-defendants, on charges related to the murders of Mason Rist, 15, and Max Dixon, 16. Mr. Snook has acknowledged transporting co-defendants Riley Tolliver, 18, and three juvenile males, aged 15, 16, and 17, to and from the incident site in south Bristol, yet he denies any prior awareness of weapons or violent intentions. On Thursday, Mr. Snook informed the court, “I was not in control of the situation.” Max and Mason were assaulted on 27 January, at approximately 23:00 GMT, shortly after departing Mason’s residence on Ilminster Avenue in Knowle West. It is alleged that they had been erroneously identified as responsible for bricks thrown at a property in the adjacent Hartcliffe district earlier on the same evening. Mr. Snook, described as a landscape gardener and former aerospace engineer, testified to the court that he believed he was conveying his four co-accused in his Audi Q2 vehicle to a “safe house” subsequent to the Hartcliffe incident. He stated that he understood he had been instructed to stop on Ilminster Avenue because that specific location was the designated safe house. Furthermore, Mr. Snook asserted that he was unaware the boys possessed weapons and did not witness the 33-second assault, as he was observing through his rear-view mirror. He conceded seeing Mason ahead of him on the roadway but maintained that he was unaware Mason had been subjected to an assault. Prosecutor Ray Tully questioned: “You must have seen the 17-year-old strike Mason with that sword – it must have been obvious to you that Mason had been severely assaulted.“You didn’t stop for him or help him. You left that boy to die in that road – that is what happened?” Mr. Tully further suggested: “I suggest you were more interested in saving your own skin than his?” Mr. Snook responded: “I had no knowledge of the severity of it.” Mr. Tully proceeded: “You drove them around and around to find targets to be hit. When they jumped out of the car you waited with your engine running and you drove down the road in order to pick them up.” He then asked: “Do you think you acted like a man that night?” Mr. Snook answered: “It is shameful what happened. But I was not in control of the situation.” The assault on Max and Mason was recorded by a CCTV camera installed at Mason’s residence. Both victims succumbed to their injuries in the hospital during the early hours of 28 January. The defendant aged 15 has pleaded guilty to the murder of Mason but denies the murder of Max, whereas the 17-year-old defendant has admitted to the manslaughter of Max but denies his murder, and also denies the murder of Mason. Mr. Snook, Mr. Tolliver, and the 16-year-old defendant each deny both charges of murder. Legal representatives for the four teenagers have confirmed that their clients will neither provide evidence nor call any witnesses. The proceedings of the trial are ongoing.