A guilty verdict for a man who beat his friend to death with a cricket bat

The Otago Daily Times reports John Collins has been on trial at the High Court at Dunedin for more than a week - accused of killing 45 year old Brent Bacon in February 2019.

But the jury took only an hour to return a unanimous verdict this afternoon.

The 39-year-old may now spend the rest of his life behind bars.

During the trial, Collins argued self-defence, saying Bacon confronted him with a pair of scissors.

But the Crown Prosecutor said Collins hit his victim until the cricket bat broke.

He will be sentenced in May.