Convicted serial rapist Malcolm Rewa has been found guilty of the 1992 murder of Susan Burdett today after a third trial. He had previously been found guilty of her rape.
In 1998, Rewa was tried twice for the murder of Burdett, but in both trials the jury was unable to reach a verdict.
After the second trial the Solicitor-General stayed further prosecution of Rewa.
Teina Pora was jailed for 22 years after being convicted for Burdett's rape and murder.
In 1994, new DNA evidence linked the attack on Burdett to Rewa. In 1998, Rewa was found guilty of her rape but in 2000, a retrial found Pora guilty again.
In March 2015, the Privy Council quashed Pora's convictions, and in 2016, the Crown paid out $3.5mil as compensation for his wrongful conviction, the largest ever payout by the Crown.
After Pora’s conviction for the murder of Burdett was quashed, the decision to stay the prosecution of Rewa was reviewed at the request of police and the third trial was allowed to go ahead.
In a statement after the verdict, Detective Superintendent Dave Lynch thanked the witnesses who gave evidence in the case.
"We appreciate it has been both difficult and traumatic for people having to relive their experiences of the case some 26 years later," said Lynch.
"I also want to acknowledge the Crown and Police investigation team for their work over the better part of the last two years preparing this case for trial."