The man accused of murdering a Filipino sailor nine years ago has been cleared of that charge but jailed for six years for his part in the brawl that led to the foreigner's death.

Jurors yesterday returned after 10 hours of deliberation and acquitted 34-year-old Charles Demicoli of killing Perfecto Montalban, 44, at Cherries Bar in Birżebbuġa on Christmas Day in 2000.

However, they found him guilty of taking part in the brawl which led to the sailor's death.

The trial lasted a week and a half and jurors had started deliberating on Tuesday afternoon.

After the verdict had been read out and the judge, Mr Justice Geoffrey Valenzia had left the courtroom, Mr Demicoli's father expressed anger at the decision, exclaiming loudly: "That's justice for you, everyone trampling on the weak."

Standing in the dock, the accused broke down in tears and was comforted by his parents and defence lawyers Gianella Caruana Curran and Emmanuel Mallia.

His father patted him on the shoulder and told him to "be brave".

Earlier, during submissions on punishment, Dr Mallia said that the police investigation had been carried out in a very shoddy manner. The crime scene was washed just hours after the brawl and the bar was open to the public for drinks that same evening.

Dr Mallia asked the court to take into consideration that his client had been waiting nine years for justice, which was "a considerable chunk of his life".

He argued that the jurors had not placed responsibility for the death on Mr Demicoli's shoulders but had chosen to limit his involvement to the brawl - and the punishment should reflect this.

This argument was strongly rebutted by the head of the Prosecution Unit at the Attorney General's Office, lawyer Anthony Barbara, who said Mr Demicoli's criminal record showed what type of person he was.

Mr Demicoli had two previous convictions, one in 1998 for possession of cannabis and another in 2007 for refusing to take a breathalyser test when it was demanded of him.

He asked the court to make an example of Mr Demicoli because violence, especially in the social setting of a bar, was unacceptable and this message should be transmitted to society.

Dr Mallia pointed out that if the police investigations had been carried out properly then the true murderer would have been known and his client would not have had to wait nine years for the case to be closed.

It was quite unfair, he added, to describe Mr Demicoli as a dubious character when one of his convictions was handed down 14 years ago and the other was just a traffic offence.

During the trial, pathologists testified that the victim had died from a severe blow to the back of the head.

The prosecution latched on to this point, submitting that it was Mr Demicoli who had struck the victim on the head with a bar stool during the fight.

Two witnesses, Mandy Ellul and Joseph Mifsud, testified that they had seen Mr Demicoli hit the victim on the front of the head with a stool but not on the back where the fatal blow was inflicted.

Mr Justice Geoffrey Valenzia jailed Mr Demicoli for six years less the four months he had spent in preventative custody.

Dr Caruana Curran and Dr Mallia are expected to appeal the judgment.