A man has been found guilty of savagely beating a Chatham dad to death with a pickaxe handle and stamping on his head.

George French, 39, was convicted of the murder of Michael Tierney today at Canterbury Crown Court.

His cousin, William Fleming, 27, has been found guilty of manslaughter.

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The jury of eight women and four men reached a unanimous verdict after more than seven hours of deliberations.

During the three-week trial, the prosecution had claimed that the victim, Mr Tierney, was beaten and stamped on following an incident in Haig Avenue.

Prosecutor Alexandra Healy QC had previously told the jury: “The circumstances of his death, you may feel, were utterly senseless.”

French, of Ansell Avenue and Fleming, of White Road, both Chatham had denied murdering the 33-year-old dad-of-one.

Ms Healy had claimed that on June 15 this year “two drunk men, one of whom was French, kicked through the gate that Mr Tierney had built near his home in Glencoe Road”.

She added: “These men were being aggressive and intimidating to Mr Tierney’s partner and to his neighbours who had rushed to the scene when they heard a noise.

“Mr Tierney took up a pickaxe handle from his house and ran after the two men. The two separated and Mr Tierney pursued French into Haig Avenue," she said.

The prosecutor also said French turned to confront Mr Tierney and successfully wrestled the pickaxe handle from his hands.

It was then that French was joined by Fleming, who was returning from a trip to the shops, and he joined in the “savage beating”.

“These involved blows to the head and torso, with French using the handle and Fleming using his shod feet, kicking and stamping on the prostrate man,” she added.

Before the trial, French had pleaded guilty to manslaughter but had denied murdering 33-year-old Mr Tierney.

Judge Adele Williams was told the plea was not accepted by the Crown Prosecution Service and the trial went ahead.

Fleming had denied murder at an earlier hearing. Both men have been remanded in custody until their sentencing at 10am tomorrow.

A 27-year-old Chatham woman has previously admitted attempting to pervert justice in relation to the case.

Kelly Wicker, of Haig Avenue, cleaned the pick axe handle, as well as French and Fleming’s clothing in a bid to destroy the evidence.

"A lot of lies were told throughout the trial. The jury were able to see through those lies clearly and they've made the right decision today" - DI Ivan Beasley

She pleaded guilty to the charge at an earlier hearing at Canterbury Crown Court, and was remanded in custody to be sentenced alongside French and her partner, Fleming.

Speaking after the verdict, senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Ivan Beasley paid tribute to Mr Tierney's large, close-knit family, and the community who supported them in the aftermath.

He said: "We had quite a lot of information coming to us from the local community quite quickly. We were able to recover some really key pieces of evidence, despite attempts to destroy them.

"I know the family of Michael Tierney are so grateful for the help and support of the community. It's been really traumatic for them to hear what happened to him."

DI Beasley also spoke of Mr Tierney's decision to chase French away from his home armed with a pickaxe handle - which had tragic consequences.

He said: "Unfortunately, that decision resulted in his death. His weapon was turned on him, he was beaten savagely. He had no chance."

DI Beasley added: "A lot of lies were told throughout the trial. The jury were able to see through those lies clearly and they've made the right decision today.

"The family are pleased they are able to get some kind of closure and move on. Two violent individuals have now got to serve a sentence for their actions."

Judge Williams commended the team which investigated the French-Fleming case, including Det Insp Ivan Beasley, Det Sgt Adam Marshall, DCs Neil Ratcliffe and Alan Davies.

Additional reporting by Paul Hooper