In a chilling case that has gripped the North West of England, former inmate Elias Morgan has been found guilty of the cold-blooded murder of ex-prison officer Lenny Scott—a crime rooted in revenge, meticulous planning, and a years-long vendetta. The verdict, delivered on August 29, 2025, at Preston Crown Court, closes a harrowing chapter that began over four years ago inside the walls of HMP Altcourse, Liverpool.
Scott, a 33-year-old father of three from Prescot, was shot six times at close range outside a gym in Skelmersdale, Lancashire, on February 8, 2024. The attack, which occurred as he was leaving a jiu-jitsu training session, was captured on CCTV and left the community stunned. According to BBC News and Sky News, Morgan, 35, approached Scott wearing a high-visibility jacket, ambushed him in the gym car park, and then fled the scene on an electric bike, disappearing into the night.
The seeds of this tragedy were sown back in March 2020, when Scott, then a prison officer at HMP Altcourse, discovered a mobile phone in Morgan’s cell. The phone contained incriminating evidence of a sexual relationship between Morgan and a female prison officer named Sarah Williams. When Scott refused a £1,500 bribe to keep quiet, Morgan’s threats began in earnest. As the prosecution described in court, Morgan chillingly promised Scott, "I'll bide my time, but I promise I will get you," making a gun gesture with his fingers. Scott, deeply unsettled, reported the threats to both prison management and Merseyside Police, fearing not just for his own safety but for his family’s as well.
A recording of Scott’s 101 call to police, played to the jury, revealed the extent of his fear: "He said he's got lads everywhere, he's described my vehicle and he's described my house and what my girlfriend and twin boys look like," Scott told the operator. When asked if it was too close to home, Scott replied, "Yeah." According to ITV News, Scott explained, "It's over because I nicked him for a phone and until I drop that he said they're staying there and they're just going to constantly be around my house. I'm in fear for my family's life, that's all."
After the phone’s discovery, Morgan was moved to a different wing in the prison, and the threats appeared to subside. Scott, however, could not escape the shadow of Morgan’s promise. In 2021, Scott was dismissed from the prison service following an unrelated incident and later found work at a warehouse in Warrington, seemingly moving on with his life. But Morgan, released from prison after serving time for drug offences, had not forgotten.
Detectives with Lancashire Police pieced together Morgan’s calculated actions in the weeks leading up to the murder. In early January 2024, Morgan was seen scouting locations connected to Scott, including his home, a gym in Liverpool, and the Peel House gym in Skelmersdale where the murder would eventually take place. On February 7, Anthony Cleary, 29, a close friend of Morgan’s, delivered a white van and an electric bike to an estate near the gym—a move Cleary claimed was innocent, though the prosecution suggested otherwise. Cleary maintained he had no idea of Morgan’s intentions and was ultimately acquitted of both murder and manslaughter charges.
On the day of the murder, Morgan left his home in Edge Hill, Liverpool, in a Mercedes GLC registered to his mother. He abandoned the car near the van and used the electric bike to approach the gym. Wearing black clothes and an orange high-vis jacket, Morgan waited in the car park for nearly an hour. CCTV footage showed him striding purposefully toward Scott, raising a handgun, and firing six shots at close range as Scott stood talking to a friend. Morgan then fled the scene on the bike, which he later loaded into the van, escaping undetected for two weeks before turning himself in to police.
The trial, which lasted nine weeks, painted a picture of premeditation and relentless pursuit. Prosecuting barrister Alex Leach KC told the court, "Morgan told Lenny he would get him. He said he would bide his time, but that he would get him." The jury, composed of eight men and three women, took just over five hours to reach a unanimous verdict, finding Morgan guilty of murder. Neither Morgan nor Cleary showed any visible reaction as the verdicts were delivered.
Scott’s family, who sat through the emotional trial, paid tribute to his integrity and devotion. His mother, Paula, told Sky News, "He wanted to make a difference. Once he got those threats, it brought it back into real life for him—that actually this could affect his family and did affect his family." His father, Neil, echoed the sentiment, describing Scott as "an amazing man who had principles... a fantastic son and father who was full of ideas about what he wanted to do in the future with his children." Paula added, "It will be so hard but we can’t let them destroy all our lives. We still have to carry on for the children’s sake—they still have to have a life. They’ll remember him, we'll never let them forget him but I think we just need to move on from this, but we’ll never move on from Lenny."
Detective Chief Inspector Lee Wilson of Lancashire Police remarked, "To kill a man, to take a man's life—a man who clearly had the utmost standards of integrity, doing his job to keep people safe in the community—to wait that length of time and then act upon that and take Lenny's life in that cold, calculating and callous way, discharging a firearm regardless of who else was around at the time, beggars belief actually."
Wendy Logan, Deputy Head of CPS North West’s Complex Casework Unit, stated, "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."
As the community comes to terms with the loss, Morgan awaits sentencing, scheduled for September 2, 2025. The case stands as a stark reminder of the dangers faced by those who uphold the law, and the devastating impact one man’s quest for revenge can have on so many lives.
