Richard Elmes will be sentenced for the manslaughter of Trowbridge builder Adrian Cooksey at Bristol Crown Court on Monday.

In September, after a two- week trial, Elmes 51, of Semington Road, Melksham was found guilty, in a majority verdict, of the death of his childhood friend Mr Cooksey, in 2009.

The jury spent more than 13 hours deliberating and found 10 to two in favour that Elmes was guilty of man-slaughter.

Mr Cooksey was found unconscious in Spa Road, Melksham, in the early hours of March 8, 2009, and died later that day in hospital from head injuries.

Elmes denied punching Mr Cooksey in a confrontation over an affair Elmes had with the wife of a mutual friend back in 1984, but admitted perjury on the first day of the trial for which he’ll also be sentenced on Monday.

Elmes was released on bail for a pre-sentence report to be prepared, following the trial, but was told by judge Neil Ford QC that a custodial sentence was inevitable.

Mr Cooksey’s son Adam said: “We finally got what we wanted, he was found guilty, but he’s still out on the streets.

“It has been a long and stressful process and we just want it done with.

He may not have admitted it, but he was found guilty by 10 people on the jury, so hopefully he’ll receive an appropriate sentence.”

In 2009, student Thomas Minshull was accused of Mr Cooksey’s manslaughter, but he was later acquitted.