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Liverpool murder verdict

April 11 2013
Three teenagers found guilty of murdering a rough sleeper behind a supermarket

Three teenage boys have been found guilty of murdering a rough sleeper behind a supermarket in Liverpool.

The schoolboys, one now aged 14 and two others aged 16, kicked 53-year old Kevin Bennett to death on 17 August of last year. The brutal attack took place behind an Iceland store in the Walton area of Liverpool in the early hours of the morning.

They now face sentences of up to 12 years, less than an adult because of their age at the time of the murder. They cannot be named for legal reasons.

Each of the three pleaded not guilty when the case came to trial in January, with the court hearing three weeks of evidence before the verdict on 26 February. When the guilty verdict was read out the youngest of the three boys started crying but the other two did not react at all, according to reports in the Liverpool Echo newspaper.

The judge commented: “Throughout the trial he appears to have been the only one of the defendants that has shown any emotion at all.”

A woman of 42 was also found guilty of perverting the course of justice by lying to police about where the boys were the night of the attack.

During the trial the court heard that the attack on Bennett, who was well known in the local area, was completely unprovoked. Prosecution lawyer Alan Conrad told the jury: “Mr Bennett had done nothing to deserve such violence. Those who attacked him were much younger and more agile than he was - very young indeed.”

Bennett had been known as a heavy drinker and was last seen leaving a local pub at 1am with a bag full of beer, hours before being set upon by the three boys.

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