Five people have today been jailed for life for the brutal murder of a man outside a Great Yarmouth pub.

A jury yesterday found defendants Todd Esherwood, Tony Smith, Stuart Layden, Roy Smith and Kelly Taylor guilty of murdering Ian Church in May last year.

Judge Peter Jacobs passed life sentences on all five, and set minimum jail terms before each can be considered for release.

Yarmouth pair Esherwood, 25, of Saxon Road, and Tony Smith, 29, of Sidney Close, must serve a minimum of 15 years.

Stuart Layden, 30, of South Quay, must serve 13 years, and Kent pair Taylor, 33, and Roy Smith, 31, will serve at least 12 years.

Judge Jacobs warned the defendants about the tragic consequences of their violent actions.

He said: 'When people who are involved in this type of behaviour late at night, sooner or later someone ends up dying.'

Mr Church, 40, suffered bleeding on the brain and never regained consciousness after trouble flared outside the Bricklayers Arms, in Nelson Road Central, in the early hours of May 5 last year.

Mr Church and friend Peter Blake had been out for the evening socialising with friends in the Yarmouth seafront area on the evening of May 4.

At around 1am, Mr Blake had left the group on Britannia Pier and headed towards the Bricklayers. In the pub, he argued with Todd Esherwood and returned to his home where he met up again with Mr Church.

Unhappy at how Mr Blake had been treated, the pair returned to the pub. During a confrontation, windows were broken and the door was damaged. A broken extendable cosh and a machete were later recovered by officers from the scene.

Mr Blake was assaulted by a group of customers before fleeing the scene, and they then turned their attentions to Mr Church, who witnesses had described as being unthreatening and not behaving in an overtly violent manner.

Mr Church was punched, kicked and stamped on, and a bar stool was used to strike him, before the group dispersed when police arrived.

Mr Church was taken to the James Paget University Hospital where, after several days in a critical condition on life support, he died.