10-year-old convicted of stoning man to death

London: One of the youngest boys ever to stand trial at the Old Bailey has been convicted of stoning a man to death at the age of 10.

Five youths, now aged between 12 and 14, were part of a gang that attacked 67-year-old Ernest Norton as he played cricket with his son.

They triggered a heart attack in Norton - an otherwise fit and healthy man - on a Sunday afternoon outside Erith leisure centre, Kent.

The gang, about 15-strong, shouted abuse at Norton, playing with his 17-year-old son James, and when the father objected they hurled whatever came to hand. Norton, hit at least twice by rocks and wood, collapsed and died in February last year.

One witness described how a 12-year-old threw "half a brick" then "stood and laughed" as it sent Norton crashing to the ground.

The five defendants, including two brothers, stood in the dock with their parents as the jury returned unanimous verdicts of manslaughter at the end of the five-week trial. The boys, all from Erith, burst into tears.

The victim's widow Linda also wept.

At present none of the defendants can be identified because of their age, but Judge Warwick McKinnon may consider lifting anonymity when he sentences them in October.

Active lifestyle

Norton had undergone a triple heart bypass 29 years earlier but maintained an active lifestyle.

On the day of the killing witnesses had seen groups of youths - known as TNE or The New Estate - armed with sticks and a baseball bat.

One defendant said a fight had been arranged on the MSN network between TNE with another gang, the Winnie Crew, against rival groups Younger RA and YRL in Erith Park that day, but nothing had happened.

The Norton family had gone to the leisure centre and Linda used the gym while father and son played an impromptu game of cricket on the outside tennis courts.