Mother of Jon-Jo killer jailed for lying to police

A woman has today been sentenced for perverting the course of justice after lying to police about the whereabouts of her son on the night of the murder of Preston man Jon-Jo Highton.

Allison Threlfall, 44, of Fell View, Chorley, admitted the offence at a previous hearing and today she was jailed for 27 months for providing the false information, along with an unrelated burglary.

Threlfall’s son, Owen Whitesmith, 20, was convicted of Jon-Jo’s murder and sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum tariff of 27 years last June.

Speaking after today’s sentencing, Detective Superintendent Eddie Thistlethwaite who lead the Jon-Jo murder enquiry said:

John-Jo, 18, was killed on the evening of Saturday 23 August 2014 on St Stephen’s Road, Preston. He had been stabbed and died as a result of a wound to his neck caused by a bladed weapon.

Last year, six men were convicted of the murder of Jon-Jo and seven other people later pleaded guilty to related offences, including attempting to cause grievous bodily harm, assisting offenders and attempting to pervert the course of justice. The overall sentence total is around 180 years for all who were involved.

Det Supt Thistlethwaite added: