The mother of a teenage boy who was brutally killed by Ally Gordon has said he should not have been free to help murderer Anthony Keating evade arrest.

The 24-year-old has been jailed for three years and four months for helping his childhood friend lie low during a police inquiry.

Keating, along with Louis Whelan carried out a savage attack on 22-year-old Blaine Hammond before they dumped his body near some allotments in December 2021.

The Northern Echo: Ally Gordon Ally Gordon (Image: Contributor)The Northern Echo: Anthony Keating Anthony Keating (Image: Contributor)He stayed with Gordon, who was living in Billingham, for two days before they were both arrested.

In 2019, Gordon, formerly of Plains Farm, Sunderland, was convicted of manslaughter following a fatal attack on young boxer Connor Brown.

He and Leighton Barrass, who were 20 at the time, attacked the 18-year-old in an alleyway near Gatsby’s pub in Sunderland.

Barrass, of Hartside Square, Sunderland, stabbed Connor with a flick knife before Gordon kicked and stamped on him.

Barrass was jailed for life for murder while Gordon was cleared of the more serious charge and convicted of manslaughter.

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The Northern Echo: Connor Brown Connor Brown (Image: Contributor)Connor’s mother Tanya Brown, from Sunderland, said: “He has committed this offence while he has been on licence for Connor’s death which he got three-and-a-half years for.

“We appealed against that because it was unduly lenient but that was refused.

“If the judges had listened to us and he was given a sentence that fitted the crime in the first place he would not have been able to commit this offence.

“That is what is so frustrating.”

Tanya and her husband Simon formed the Connor Brown Trust in his memory and the pair are ardent anti-knife crime campaigners.

She said: “I know he did not have a direct impact on Blaine’s death but he has had an impact on the traumatic effect on Blaine’s family where they have still had this court case looming over them.

“It is hard enough trying to come to terms with the loss of child but to have to go through court case after court case is even harder.

“His involvement has dragged it out that little bit longer.”

The Northern Echo: Blaine Hammond Blaine Hammond (Image: Contributor)Get the latest news, sports, and entertainment delivered straight to your device with a subscription to The Northern Echo. Click here 

Tanya said length of his most recent sentence imposed at Newcastle Crown Court would not be enough to help Gordon learn from his mistakes.

She said: “I think it is vile and I am disgusted that he is getting the same sentence for this as he got for manslaughter.

“He will be out in half the time again and how many more families is he going to destroy?

“He is not going to be in long enough to change.

“It feels like he is getting away with it time after time.

“Where is the justice for Connor and where is the justice for Blaine?

“There is no justice.”