by Keith Hunt

A former strongman who was convicted almost three years ago of murdering alcoholic Ted Shaxted at his Northfleet flat has now been acquitted.

Marvin Service was jailed for life with a minimum tariff of 14 years with three others in February 2009.

The Court of Appeal overturned the conviction, along with those of Kelvin Horlock, Bill Saunders and Trevor Lees, in July last year and ordered a retrial.

Horlock, 33, Saunders, 31, and Lees, 39, were again convicted at the second trial in June this year and re-sentenced to life, but the jury could not agree on a verdict for Service.

Now, the 35-year-old, of Brandon Street, Gravesend, has been acquitted of both murder and manslaughter by a third jury.

He looked stunned as the verdicts were returned on Wednesday afternoon.

Judge Jeremy Carey then told the jury of six men and six women that Service had previously been convicted but the conviction was quashed by Appeal Court judges on a point of law.

Horlock was jailed for a minimum of 14 years four months, Saunders to 13 years four months and Lees to 12-and-a-half years.

Mr Shaxted was given a beating at his Wallis Park home in December 2007 for stealing a car owned by Horlock’s mother Karen with her pedigree dog in it and crashing while drunk.

The prosecution called it a "callous, bullying revenge attack" which left Mr Shaxted's head looking like a pumpkin, swollen to almost double the normal size, and his rib cage broken virtually from top to bottom.

A paramedic described the 36-year-old victim's flat as looking like an abattoir. He died from his injuries two weeks later.

Service's left palm print was found on the wall of the bathroom where Mr Shaxted was dragged and beaten.

Service, who has competed in power lifting contests, admitted lying to police for two days by denying he had ever been to Wallis Park.

He then claimed he went to the flat to see if the police were there after Horlock told him "a fellah had been given a bit of a dig".

Horlock, who was defended by the Prime Minister's brother Alexander Cameron QC, said he went into the bathroom and saw blood. It must have been then, he added, that his palm print was left there.