'He's a dead man walking' Rhys Jones' killer fears revenge attack over TV drama
THE violent thug who shot dead schoolboy Rhys Jones fears a new TV drama about the crime has left him a “dead man walking”.
Tragic moment Rhys Jones' mother breaks down over her son
Sean Mercer, 26, is serving a life sentence for murder in tough Frankland Prison in Co Durham where Britain’s most notorious killers are caged.
And he is said to be terrified ITV drama Little Boy Blue, which depicts the shocking crime 10 years ago, will single him out as a target for revenge attacks.
Violent thug Sean Mercer and his 11-year-old victim Rhys Jones
Tragic Rhys Jones distraught family
Last night’s first episode showed 11-year-old Rhys, played by Sonny Beyga, walking home from football practice in Croxteth, Liverpool.
The footall-mad schoolboy was hit by a stray bullet fired by Mercer, played in the drama by Paddy Rowan.
ITV drama Little Boy Blue portrays the horrific murder of Rhys Jones
The TV series has turned him into a celebrity and celebrity inmates are simply dead men walking
A prison source told the Daily Star: “Mercer cannot stand it. There are some real tough guys in Frankland and he is not one of them.
“It’s a real ‘Monster Mansion’ and it’s giving him nightmares.
“He hoped to slip under the radar because so few people knew the appalling thing he had done.
“But the TV series has turned him into a celebrity and celebrity inmates are simply dead men walking.
Rhys Jones was shot dead in Liverpool 10 years ago
“He knows there will be no shortage of volunteers lining up to take a pop at him and is desperate for a move.
Frankland, where the Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe is jailed, has a reputation as one of Britain’s toughest prisons.
High-profile inmate Ian Huntley had his throat cut and Milly Dowler’s murderer Levi Bellfield had his face slashed.