A man plunged a blade into the stomach of a company director and killed him in front of a crowd during a savage street brawl, a court heard today.
Zechelle Reid is facing a life sentence after he stabbed Jason Bentley-Morrison, 25, while the two fought outside a nightclub in Birmingham.
Reid, 31, got out of a Mercedes outside the Lab 11 club in Digbeth before the altercation, in which Bentley-Morrison threw a punch at him, the jury was told.
The brawl moved across the road followed by a large crowd before Reid “lunged” at hi s victim, a court heard.
Zechelle Reid, of no fixed address, was convicted of murder today following a two-week trial at Birmingham Crown Court, Birmingham Live reports.
The jury heard how Reid appeared to speak to a couple of people outside Lab11 on Birmingham’s Oxford Street, in the early hours of Sunday, August 22 last year.
He then returned to the vehicle which he then parked on Coventry Street nearby.
A few minutes later Mr Bentley-Morrison came out of the club and Reid, who by this time had returned to Lab 11, appeared to 'mouth' something to the victim.
CCTV showed how Reid was waiting to get into the club just before 3am on 22 August last year, just as the victim was leaving after enjoying a night at the Oxford Street club.
Footage showed Reid apparently make a comment to Mr Bentley-Morrison and the victim then hit him seconds later.
Both men were then separated and then each adopted a fighting or boxing stance as they faced each other.
They then moved across the road followed by a large crowd, the court heard.
The men then confronted one another again with Reid making "lunging" movements towards Mr Bentley-Morrison while another man also approached the victim and made a swinging motion towards his head.
The 25-year-old then collapsed, falling face forward and later died in hospital.
Medics tried to save his life at the scene in Oxford Street and at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, but he died at 10.30am that day.
Reid, who denied the charge, had claimed he had been acting in self defence.
Sentencing will take place next Wednesday.
