Two teenagers have been found guilty of killing a man who they thought was a paedophile by luring him to a beach before another teenager beat him with rocks.
A girl, 16, and a 15-year-old boy were convicted of manslaughter after killing Alexander Cashford, 49, in Leysdown-on-Sea on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent on August 10 last year.
Another 16-year-old male involved in the ordeal had already pleaded guilty to a secondary charge of manslaughter.
The teenagers had been on trial at Woolwich Crown Court for the murder of Mr Cashford, but all three of them were acquitted of murder on Monday.
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Mr Cashford was killed in Leysdown-on-Sea on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent on August 10 last year.
The teenagers, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had accused the man of paedophilia and consequently, pursued him and hit him with rocks and a bottle, before he was found lying face down in the mud.
Jurors previously heard the victim had given his number to the girl on August 8 after meeting her at an arcade and that he had handed her a business card with a fake name on it.
Using the alias "Sienna", the three teenagers sent Mr Cashford a message, arranging to meet him by the sea wall.
Alexander Cashford, 49, was lured to a beach on the Isle of Sheppey by three teenagers last summer
|KENT POLICE
Danny Robinson KC, who was defending the female teenager, told the court the texts started out as a "big laugh" which may have become a way of naming and shaming Mr Cashford.
He said: "You can just imagine, can't you, a group of bored teenagers messing around, contacting Mr Cashford, texting without much of a plan."
During the trial, the 16-year-old boy, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter, told the court that before the attack, the three teenagers had discussed giving Cashford "a slap".
However, the other boy and girl were not aware of this plan, jurors heard.
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Two teenagers have been found guilty of manslaughter in Woolwich Crown Court today
|GETTY
The 16-year-old boy also claimed earlier in the trial that he thought the police "wouldn't have done anything" if they had reported Mr Cashford for attempting to meet up with the teenage girl.
A post-mortem examination of the victim showed injuries to his face and head, bruises on his limbs and body, as well as fractured ribs that caused a punctured lung.
Mr Robinson has previously told the court the ordeal was a "childish escapade" and there was no premeditation to murder Mr Cashford, but simply, "got out of hand very quickly with tragic consequences".
Footage played during the trial showed the 16-year-old boy striking the man with a bottle on the back of the head, before attempting to hit him again with it.
The teenager conceded he wanted to hurt Mr Cashford, but believed it would not cause "serious injury".
He said in evidence: "I'm not really sure what was going through my head."
Benjamin Newton KC, who defended the 15-year-old boy, who was 14 at the time of the crime, said the boy could not be seen trying to hit Mr Cashford in the video footage.
However, the boy was seen falling over, the court heard.
Mr Newton dubbed the prosecution's case as a "house of straw".
Natalie Smith, senior crown prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "This was a carefully pre-planned deliberate and violent attack on someone who was not expecting it and who could not defend himself."
They are expected to be sentenced for manslaughter in April.
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