A dad-of-five described as "ranting and raving" after fatally knifing a pensioner seven times has been convicted of manslaughter.

Ajay Porter stabbed Derek O'Hare to death in a communal hallway outside the 66-year-old's home at an over-55s residents' block in Dover.

The tragedy on December 11 last year occurred after Porter had been accused by his victim, described by one of his neighbours as "happy, cheerful and always singing", of stealing drugs from him.

Canterbury Crown Court heard the two men had been close friends and Porter went to the flat in Anstee Road at about 10pm to "resolve" the problem.

It was alleged by the prosecution that he then murdered Mr O'Hare in a "vicious and merciless" attack, and had been seen by fellow resident Stephen Price to be "ranting, raving and out of control" in the immediate aftermath.

However, 36-year-old Porter, also from Dover but of no fixed address, claimed he acted out of fear and panic, telling the court that having been confronted and struck to the head with what he thought was a wooden bat, he lashed out at the pensioner in self-defence and lost control.

At his trial, he could only recall inflicting one stab wound - with a knife he claimed the pensioner had also armed himself with - and not the seven injuries that were suffered.

One to the mid-chest area and measuring 12cm in depth was later described as "catastrophic" by a pathologist.

The bat, which was in fact a stick, was found by police broken in two pieces on the top floor landing and on stairs leading down to the first floor.

However, the blade used to fatally injure Mr O'Hare has never been recovered.

Mr Price, one of the victim's neighbours, told the court he came out of his flat to see the "out of control" Porter brandishing the stick, holding out his arms and proclaiming "Look what he has done to me" while Mr O'Hare lay dying in a pool of blood on his doorstep.

He then fled the property and within a couple of hours made an "emotional" late-night call to his estranged wife Michaela Porter before handing himself in to police four days later.

Mr O'Hare however sadly died at the scene despite resuscitation attempts. He was later described in online tributes "a man with a big heart".

Porter denied murder, the alternative charge of manslaughter, and having a bladed article.

Verdicts were returned today after the jury of eight women and four men had deliberated for about 11 hours.

Porter was found not guilty of murder and having a bladed article but guilty of manslaughter.

The court heard Mr O'Hare and his much younger friend had often taken drugs together, and in the days leading up to the killing, the pensioner had accused Porter of stealing an amount of DMT - known for its hallucinogenic and psychedelic effects - from him.

But prosecutor NIna Ellin KC had told jurors that even if Mr O'Hare had opened his front door holding a stick, he was soon disarmed and then stabbed unlawfully to death.

The victim had lived at Anstee Road for about four to five years and his daughter Emily, who lived nearby, was among his regular visitors.

She told the court his home was "always very bright, neat and tidy, with music on and incense burning".

On the day he died, the pensioner was described by his son Daniel as being "happy and bubbly".

The pair had collected various furniture items from another neighbour who was moving out and at 5.30pm Mr O'Hare Snr made a "chirpy" video call to his daughter to see whether she wanted any for her new home.

Miss O'Hare explained to the court that her father was "very open" about his drug-taking and smoked cannabis after weaning himself off strong prescription drugs for chronic knee and back pain.

He was also known to take DMT, LSD and magic mushrooms, and started using cocaine about a month before he was fatally stabbed.

Miss O'Hare said she noticed that caused a change in his behaviour in that he became agitated, less generous, and dishevelled.

However, she added that Mr O'Hare preferred psychedelic drugs.

The court heard he told her about 10 days before his death that he thought Porter had stolen his DMT.

But in response she told her dad he had known Porter "for a long time" and he had never stolen from him before.

Miss O'Hare also revealed that the pensioner had asked her "how hard" she thought Porter was and whether he (Mr O'Hare) could "take him".

But she told the jury she "dismissed" it as being a "silly comment" in the context of whether her dad could "handle himself", and said he made no actual reference to having any confrontation.

"It seemed like a silly, small disagreement and almost like bravado... I wasn't concerned in any way," added Miss O'Hare.

Porter, who often took drugs with his older friend, told the court he arrived at the flat unarmed at approximately 10pm and had not expected any violence.

However, he described how he was repeatedly struck by Mr O'Hare as he walked up the communal stairs.

“I came up around the corner of the stairs and I got hit in the head,” said Porter.

“It hurt, it knocked me back and blood was pouring down my face. He hit me maybe four or five times and then more when I reached the landing.

“I don’t know why I kept on going forward. I thought if I turn I might be hit on the back of the head.

“He kept on swinging at me, and I pleaded with him to stop but he carried on. I put my arms up to defend myself. I grabbed the bat to try to get it off him.”

Following his arrest, Porter told police he had then blacked out and never saw a knife.

But giving evidence he admitted he had lied to officers and had in fact stabbed his friend.

“Derek had the knife, it looked quite big, silver. I let go of the bat and then I tried to get the knife off him," he explained.

“I grabbed him by his wrist and used force to get the knife. Then he’s stumbled back and eventually fell over.

“As he’s fell over, I’ve fell on top of him. I basically got the knife off him as he’s falling. We’ve had a scuffle.

“I stabbed him - I thought it was in the shoulder area. I know I stabbed him, but after that I don’t know - I can’t account for all the injuries.”

Seven wounds of various depths were inflicted to Mr O'Hare's back, chest and shoulder.

The fatal injury cut through one of Mr O’Hare’s ribs, through his left lung and punctured a major artery next to his heart.

Porter maintained he had defended himself as he came under attack.

“At the time I stabbed him, he was attacking me, hitting me and I was trying to get him to stop fighting me," he added.

“Then a lady started screaming and a man told me to f*** off. The man was saying [Mr O’Hare] is in a bad way.

“I didn’t think there was anything wrong with him and I was saying look what he’s done to me.”

Asked by his lawyer Ian Henderson KC what was the last thing he could remember while fighting with Mr O'Hare, Porter replied "Stabbing him", before adding: "I just lost control of myself in that situation."

Following his arrest, Porter had told police that although he thought the pensioner was "not really a violent person", he feared that he (Porter) was going to be killed.

"I was in shock. If I knew he was going to be like that, I wouldn't have gone there. I didn't know that's what he was planning," he explained in his video-recorded interview played in court.

"He was angry and raging at me and trying to do me in. I didn't think he was that sort of person."

The court also heard that during the commotion at the flats, two voices were overheard by Mr Price.

One said, "I've done a lot for you over the years" while the other said words to the effect of, "You wasn't as hard as you thought you was".

But Mr Price agreed when questioned by Mr Henderson that he could not be sure who said what or in what order.

Another resident, Malcolm Layton, said he had heard an unknown male's voice shouting words to the effect of: "You think you’re a big man, you’re not such a big man now."

That was then followed by words said in a lowered tone and along the lines of: “Why, why would you do that? I’ve always been nice to you.”

Fellow neighbour Linda Collins described hearing banging, shouting and, after stepping outside her door, seeing Porter "wide-eyed staring" and "in shock" as he stood on the stairs holding the stick.

In her evidence, Mrs Porter said that during her 90-minute phone chat with her husband he had been "upset and apologetic" but had not told her anything about events that night.

She then saw him the next day at his mum's house in Oswald Road after he had asked her to bring him some clothes and, as well as appearing hungover, he had a large graze on his forehead, which he attributed to falling down steps leading to his mum's front door.

Porter will be sentenced by Judge Simon James on July 30 and has been remanded in custody.

Mr O'Hare's family were in court throughout the trial and for the verdicts.

Speaking afterwards, his son Ben told KentOnline: “My father was the best man I knew - a wonderful, caring and generous man which anyone who met him can attest to.

“As a family we are all completely devastated and dumbfounded with the verdict, and feel the only one without a life sentence is the one who killed my father.”