Stephen Lawrence's killer David Norris sent out prison selfies with sneaked-in phone, cops reveal
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: One of the men convicted of killing Stephen Lawrence reportedly acquired a cellphone while inside prison and texted selfies to friends. Prison officers allegedly found a mobile phone hidden inside David Norris, 46, through X-ray. Norris was detained in Dartmoor Prison and is one of two men found guilty of stabbing Stephen Lawrence to death on April 22, 1993, in Eltham, southeast London.
Initially, prison guards searched Norris's cell this week, but they were unable to find anything significant, according to the MailOnline. However, a subsequent X-ray revealed a ‘big rectangle object’ lodged inside his body, which was ultimately determined to be a smartphone. A source revealed to Daily Mail that it was an HTC device. Officials are now reportedly looking into the contents of the phone in order to determine who Norris had been in communication with and how he came into possession of it.
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A Prison Service spokesman told MailOnline, "A phone has been recovered and we continue to investigate." According to Daily Mail, Norris had been using his smartphone to contact and text friends, access Facebook, and watch YouTube videos while he was imprisoned. He had also been sending images of himself from his prison cell to people outside. He reportedly posted a picture of himself behind bars wearing Top Gun-style aviator sunglasses and with his TV and Xbox games console in the background.
Norris also reportedly announced his hopeful release from custody on WhatsApp, writing that he would be "coming home in 2 to liven you all up." However, after this new discovery, Norris could face further punishment depending on the outcome of the investigation. According to Daily Mail, he is set to be stripped of several privileges and could be transferred to a tougher, higher-security prison in the coming days.
Five men were initially detained by police in connection with the racial slaying of 18-year-old Lawrence. In 2012, Norris and Gary Dobson, 47, were found guilty and jailed for life. Dobson was given at least 15 years and two months behind bars while Norris was told he must serve at least 14 years and three months before being considered for release. In May, an attempt to move Norris to an open prison was blocked by then-justice secretary Dominic Raab amid fears he still posed a risk to the public.
A Prison Service spokesperson explained, “We do not tolerate illicit phones in jail, and prisoners found with them should expect to face longer behind bars. We have invested £125 million in tougher prison security measures - including X-ray body scanners that have intercepted over 20,000 attempts to smuggle contraband behind bars in the past two years.”