TWO Croatian men have been convicted of killing a Bournemouth holidaymaker and jailed.

Marko Rajkovic, 24, was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment while his co-defendant Marko Bursic, 28, was handed a 12-year sentence for murdering 30-year-old Peter Rushton.

A third defendant - Amir Kovacevic, 23 - was found not guilty by a court in Pula, Croatia. The court had heard how father-of-one Mr Rushton had been celebrating his birthday when he was subjected to "a savage beating", stripped naked and wrapped in a sack stuffed with lead weights.

He was then taken out to sea, under cover of darkness, and thrown overboard while still alive.

Delivering the guilty verdicts, Judge Damir Krpan, who presided over the trial, said: "It has been proved that Marko Rajkovic punched Peter Rushton several times and, when bleeding on the floor, Marko Rajkovic continued to kick the British man.

"This trial has also shown that the Briton was still alive when he was thrown into the sea where he died. It appears that Marko Rajkovic wanted to hide the evidence."

The three accused stood silent as the verdicts were read out and lawyers did not say whether or not there would be any appeals.

Dorset police officer Jane Wakefield, who rang the Rushton family after the verdicts, said: "The past year has been a very tough and long one for Peter's mother."

Inspector Dave James said: "The trial was fair and the sentences received were adequate."

Mr Rushton was holidaying alone when he fell in with the trio in a caf where he invited them to join him for a few drinks in a nearby bar last October.

He left his passport and mobile phone in the Pical hotel in Porec and the search for him finally ended almost a month later.

  • See Tuesday's Daily Echo for the background to this case.