Teenager in Wales handed life sentence after killing his mother with a hammer

An 18-year-old man who expressed misogynistic views and had a fascination with the horror film American Psycho has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years and six months for killing his mother with a hammer.Tristan Roberts carefully planned the crime, researching methods of killing and how to avoid being caught before buying potential weapons such as knives, hammers and an axe.He started attacking his mother, Angela Shellis, 45, at their home in Prestatyn, Wales" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="64280" data-entity-type="location">North Wales, late in the evening of 23 October 2025. In the early hours, he persuaded her to leave the house and said he would take her for medical help.The two walked through a nature reserve, where he took a hammer from a rucksack and killed Shellis, a teaching assistant at a high school, by hitting her on the head multiple times. He recorded the attacks at home and at the nature reserve on a dictaphone.In the weeks before the killing, he had posted a still from the film American Psycho on Discord showing the blood-spattered protagonist and the message: “i got urges.” In another he said: “its gonna be some American Psycho sht haha”.A message posted on Discord by Tristan Roberts before he killed Angela Shellis. Photograph: Wales" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="64280" data-entity-type="location">North Wales policeIn others, he wrote: “i do hate girls … girls/women i also dont trust them” and “she is gonna just vanish off the earth … now its time”.During his research he asked an AI chatbot: “What is a better weapon for a murder, a hammer or a knife?” The chatbot refused to engage. But he asked again after stating he was writing a book on serial killers and was given responses.On the day of the murder, he left a voice note on the dictaphone: “This is Tristan Roberts. Tonight, I’m going to be Alex and I’m going to murder my mother with a sledgehammer.” It is not clear why he used the alter ego “Alex”.After killing his mother, Roberts recorded himself saying: “Oh God that was terrifying … That felt so crazy.” On Discord he said: “I’ve just had the craziest day.”Police were called to the nature reserve on the morning of 24 October when Shellis’s body was found in undergrowth. A 100-metre blood trail led to it, and gloves and a balaclava were found at the scene, alongside the victim’s crutch, which she needed for a knee injury.At first, detectives thought she may have been attacked by a stranger but doorbell footage showed the mother and son leaving their home at 3.19am. Police believe Roberts had kept his mother prisoner in her room for about four hours, and during attacks carried out there she suffered bruising to the face and strangulation injuries.Angela Shellis, 45, was killed on 24 October 2025. Photograph: Wales" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="64280" data-entity-type="location">North Wales policeThe footage showed Roberts returning to the house after the killing and then leaving again. Police believe he was planning to return to the scene with bleach to try to clean up the scene.Roberts turned 18 on 13 October, 10 days before the attack, which police believe is significant because it meant he could legally buy some of the tools he used as weapons.When the teenager was arrested, he seemed calm and asked: “Is the body you found my mother?” A mental health nurse deemed him fit for interview and he was questioned on nine occasions during four days. He answered “no comment” to all questions.Judge Rhys Rowlands told Roberts: “You appear to have revelled in the control you exerted over your own mother. It was on any view a truly awful way for someone to die.“It was made all the more dreadful by the fact her attacker was her own son, someone who it is clear she both cared for and, indeed, worried about in the weeks leading up to her death.”Shellis’ elder son, Ethan Roberts, said in a statement: “All my mum ever did was love Tristan.”Her sister, Sarah Gunther, said: “She was a fantastic and fiercely supportive mum, the kind who never gave up, no matter how hard life became. She fought tirelessly for them, and her love for them was unbreakable.”After the sentencing at Mold crown court, Andrew Slight of the Crown Prosecution Service said: “The level of planning Tristan Roberts did ahead of committing this shocking crime was elaborate and calculated. His mother’s final moments must have been terrifying, yet he showed no concern or remorse for his actions.”