FORMER LOVERS Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito have been found guilty early today by an Italian court of the murder of British student Meredith Kercher.
The court convicted American student Amanda Knox (22) and her Italian boyfriend at the time of the killing, Rafaele Sollecito (25), of murdering the British student in a drunken sex game two years ago.
A court in the central Italian city of Perugia sentenced Knox to 26 years in prison and Sollecito to 25 years.
Knox bowed her head and burst into tears as the verdict was read out. Her lawyer, Luciano Ghirga, put a comforting arm around her as she wept.
Sollecito looked impassive while Miss Kercher's family appeared composed.
Reports say that Knox wailed and sobbed as she was led from court.
Her family had held hands as they waited for the verdict. Their faces fell as they learnt of Knox's fate and her sister Deanna Knox wept uncontrollably.
Knox's father, Curt Knox, left ashen faced. Asked if his family would appeal against the verdict, he said: "Hell, yes."
Miss Kercher's family's lawyer, Francesco Maresca, said they were satisfied with the verdict: "They got the justice they were expecting. We got what we were hoping for," he said.
"With what we got with the Guede sentence last year, we have obtained truth and justice for this tragic event."
Knox, who is from Seattle, was convicted of all charges relating to the November 2007 killing of the 21-year-old English student, with whom she shared an apartment in the Italian university town.
What began as an extreme sex game ended with Sollecito holding her down while Knox cut her throat with a six-inch kitchen knife.
The pair committed the killing in Perugia with small-time drug dealer Rudy Guede (22), who was jailed for murder and sexual violence last October and sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Both Knox and Sollecito had protested their innocence.
Kercher, from Coulsdon in southeast England, was found semi-naked with her throat cut in the bedroom of her apartment. She had been sharing a house with Knox, who was also a student, on her year abroad in the Umbrian hilltop town.
Knox and Sollecito had been on trial for the past 11 months, having been arrested four days after Miss Kercher was murdered over two years ago.
At 10.35am local time yesterday, the judge declared the hearing to be at an end and left the courtroom with the other professional judge, wearing robes and a ruffed neckband, and the six lay judges, some sporting sashes in the Italian national colours of red, green and white.
A verdict was finally reached almost 14 hours later.
Knox and Sollecito were told they must pay a total of €5 million to the Kercher family as compensation for their daughter's murder.
Knox was told that she must also pay €40,000 compensation to Patrick Lumumba for defaming the local barman whom she falsely accused of Miss Kercher's murder. - (PA, Reuters and Guardianservice)