Drug user guilty of unlawfully killing dealer

Cannabis dealer Robert Tyler-Jones died after being wounded with his own knife at Kieran Roche's flat in Cuffley, near Potters Bar

A cannabis user has been convicted of unlawfully killing a drug dealer who arrived at his home armed with a knife.

Kieran Roche, 30, was found not guilty of murdering Robert Tyler-Jones, after a trial at St Albans Crown Court, but guilty of manslaughter.

Mr Tyler-Jones, 24, of Northaw, Hertfordshire, was fatally wounded, with a kitchen knife he had armed himself with, during a confrontation at Roche's flat in Cuffley, Hertfordshire, in April.

Roche smiled and winked towards relatives in the public gallery after jurors returned their verdicts. He is due to be sentenced in December.

Roche had denied unlawfully killing Mr Tyler-Jones - and pleaded not guilty to murder and manslaughter.

He had told jurors he had been in a "fight for survival".

Kieran Roche has been found guilty of manslaughter after a trial at St Albans Crown Court

Barrister Nathan Rasiah KC, prosecuting, said Mr Tyler-Jones told a friend that Roche had "stolen" two bags of cannabis from someone else.

The barrister said Mr Tyler-Jones, a former warehouse worker, had bought one bag from Roche for £700 and wanted to buy the second.

A few days before he died, Mr Tyler-Jones had joked that he could ''go rob'' Mr Roche.

On 23 April, he armed himself with a kitchen knife and drove to Roche's flat, Mr Rasiah said.

Mr Tyler-Jones was caught on CCTV running from Roche's flat shortly after arriving.

He had suffered stab wounds to his abdomen and chest and died shortly afterwards.

'Fight or Flight'

Roche told jurors how Mr Tyler-Jones had arrived at his flat and threatened him with a knife.

He described how he had grappled with Mr Tyler-Jones but said he had not stabbed him and told jurors "it was obviously fight or flight for me".

Mr Tyler-Jones had dropped the knife and left the flat, he said.

"At the time I didn't actually know he had been stabbed," Roche told jurors.

"The motion of going back and forward. The two of our hands has created a force which obviously ended up with him being stabbed.

"I definitely didn't stab him."

Judge Lana Wood adjourned sentencing until 18 December and remanded the killer in custody.