A BULLY who killed a defenceless 19-year-old in a terrifying attack on Brighton seafront, has been jailed for life at Lewes Crown Court.

Robert Cairns, 23, was given a life sentence after being found guilty of murdering leukaemia sufferer Justin Hayward at Dukes Mound in October, 1996. His lieutenant Paul Maynard, 19, was jailed for three and a half years after being found guilty of causing grevious harm with intent. He was found not guilty of murder. The jury spent five hours considering their verdict at the end of a three-week trial. Both had denied murder. During the trial Cairns and Maynard blamed each other for the killing. Cairns, by the jury's verdict, was the man who wielded the fatal knife blows. Maynard denied using the knife, but was found guilty of kicking Justin. The three had all been staying at a Brighton hostel. Cairns hung his head as the jury found him guilty of murder. Immediately, Judge Sir Charles McCullough sentenced Cairns to life imprisonment. He then told Maynard: "This was a two-to-one attack on a defenceless young man for no reason at all. He offered no provocation. This was bullying." In a statement through their solictor Justin's parents said: "The events that have taken place over the last years have been incredibly stressful for our family. Justin suffered more than mere words can explain. His death was so cruel we cannot believe how horrible it was. It is still, and will be for the rest of our lives, a terrible trauma to live with. It will never go away."

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