GUILTY OF MURDER

A majority verdict by the jury of 11 to one brought to an end the dramatic six-week trial of the 29-year-old former school caretaker at the Old Bailey in London.

His ex-girlfriend Maxine Carr, 26, an assistant teacher at the school, was also found guilty of conspiring to pervert the course of justice. She was acquitted of two counts of assisting an offender.

The verdicts follow a direction by Judge Justice Moses earlier today that he would accept verdicts based on a majority of at least ten to two.

Huntley admitted that the two ten-year-olds died at his house and that he disposed of the bodies, but he denied murdering them in August 2002.

The jurors started their deliberations just after 11am on Friday, after the judge concluded his summing up and told them to appoint a foreman. He had originally said they must reach a unanimous decision.

During Friday's deliberations the jurors requested to again see the bath from Huntley's house, which was shown during the trial.

In court Huntley said Holly had died accidentally after falling into his bath as he helped her with a nosebleed. He admitted killing Jessica by putting his hand over her mouth to stop her screaming.

The schoolgirls disappeared from their village of Soham, Cambridgeshire, on August 4 last year. Their badly-burnt bodies were found two weeks later in a ditch on Lakenheath RAF base.

Huntley was given two life sentences for the murders of Holly and Jessica, by the trial judge, Mr Justice Moses.

Carr was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in jail for perverting the course of justice.

"You are the only person who knows why," Mr Justice Moses told Huntley.

He said Huntley enticed the girls into his house.

"You showed no mercy and you showed no regret," he added.

"You have increased the families' suffering by your lies."

The judge said Carr would serve half of her sentence, and the rest would be on licence.

He told her: "Your selfish concern made you all too ready to lie."

Updated: 12:08 Wednesday, December 17, 2003