Alinjavwa Siwale, 22, was found injured at the address in Affleck Road shortly after 12.15am on Friday 11 December last year.

He was pronounced dead at the scene, having suffered multiple stab wounds.

A second man at the address had also been stabbed and he jumped over a neighbouring fence to get help. He was taken to hospital for treatment.

When police arrived on scene, it was established that the front door had been forced open and officers began searching the Greenstead area.

Just after 3am a call was received from a house on Teal Close, reporting someone who had been knocking at the back door of the property for several hours.

An officer from the Dog Unit was first on scene, and he detained 25-year-old Sheldon McKay in the garden of the property. His bloody clothes were immediately seized and he was arrested on suspicion of murder.

McKay was later forensically linked via his clothing to the DNA of the victim Alinjavwa.

Further enquiries with McKay’s associates led to the arrest of 20-year-old Phoenix Lee.

Both men, of no fixed address, were charged with murder and with committing grievous bodily harm with intent.

On Tuesday 7 September, they were found guilty on all charges against them at Chelmsford Crown Court, despite denying their involvement throughout the trial.

Detectives gathered CCTV which showed the pair forcing the front door open at around 00.12 on the morning of the murder.

Just three minutes later, the second victim left the property to get help from a neighbour, whilst Alinjavwa lay fatally wounded in the kitchen.

The pair will be sentenced on 11 October.