A 27-year-old man has been found guilty of the murder of British backpacker Grace Millane, whose body was found buried in a suitcase in New Zealand, local media reported.
The young woman from Wickford, Essex, was strangled by a man she had met on dating site Tinder and with whom she spent several hours drinking in the centre of Auckland on 1 December 2018.
The pair returned to his apartment and Ms Millane was killed either that night or in the early hours of the next morning - the date of her 22nd birthday.
The jury of seven women and five men returned a unanimous verdict after just five hours deliberation at Auckland High Court.
The Crown successfully argued the man, whose name is subject to a suppression order, strangled her and shoved her body inside a suitcase before burying her in a forested area outside Auckland.
She was assumed missing and her father, David Millane, flew to New Zealand as local authorities spent a week searching until her body was found by police.
The defence had claimed the death was accidental and occurred during rough sex.
Justice Simon Moore told jury members before they delivered their verdict that they had to be certain the man had murderous intent when he put his hands on Ms Millane's neck during sexual intercourse to convict him of murder, the New Zealand Herald reported.
Mr Moore asked: "Are you sure that when he applied pressure to Ms Millane's neck... Did he intend to cause injury?"
He further asked them to consider if the accused was willing to take the chance of Ms Millane dying due to his actions.
"If yes, then (the defendant) is guilty of murder," the judge said.
"In other words, (he) must have appreciated Ms Millane's death was a likely consequence... but was willing to run that risk."
During the trial the jurors heard from forensic experts who examined the accused's apartment for blood stains as well as Ms Millane's body after her death.
They were also shown footage of the woman and the defendant drinking at various bars throughout Auckland and kissing before they returned to his apartment.
Video footage from the elevator of her exiting on the third floor marked the last recorded time Ms Millane was seen alive.
Ms Millane's parents were present throughout the trial.
"Grace was our sunshine and she will be missed forever," the paper quoted her father as saying outside the court.
"(The verdict) will not reduce the pain and suffering we have had to endure...Grace was taken in the most brutal fashion a year ago and our lives have been ripped apart."
The judge thanked the jurors for their service in what he called a particularly difficult case.
Thousands of people held candlelight vigils after Ms Millane's death in a national outpouring of grief, with Prime Minister Jacinda Arden holding back tears in an apology to Ms Millane's family on behalf of the country.
Additional reporting: Reuters
