A Turkish court has sentenced a man to 15 years in prison for stabbing two Leeds United fans to death before a match in Istanbul two years ago.
Judge Iskender Tepebasi sentenced the main suspect in the case, Mr Ali Umit Demir, for stabbing Christopher Loftus and Kevin Speight in April 2000.
The two were killed after street clashes in downtown Istanbul, the night before Leeds United played Turkey's Galatasaray in the second leg of the UEFA Cup semifinals.
The court sentenced four other Turks to three months and 22 days in prison for involvement in the fighting that led to the fans' deaths. Two other Turks were fined, one for concealing a knife used in the fight.
Earlier in the case, prosecutors had reduced the maximum sentence for Demir and the other suspects charged with killing the English fans from 30 to 15 years, because it was not clear if any of the defendants was the sole cause of the deaths.
Defence lawyers had argued the English fans had provoked the defendants by insulting the Turkish flag.
Demir has been jailed since the court began hearing the case in 2000. All the other defendants were released on bail at the start of the case.
Judge Tepebasi acquitted 13 other defendants after prosecutors said there was not enough evidence against them.
Lawyers are expected to appeal against the verdict and must do so within a week. Two other Turkish suspects charged with the murders remain at large.
PA