THE man who murdered and dismembered 49-year-old Simon Shotton has been jailed for life.

Benjamin Atkins, 49, has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 19 years.

His co-defendant, Debbie Pereira, has been sentenced to four years.

As reported, Mr Shotton’s severed remains were found discarded around the Boscombe area last summer.

Atkins and Pereira were arrested at their Aylesbury Road flat after being caught selling Mr Shotton’s phone to Cash Creators in Boscombe.

The pair faced a six-week trial at Winchester Crown Court, beginning on April 10.

Atkins was found guilty of murder by a majority jury verdict, having previously admitted to charges of perverting the course of justice, and preventing the burial of a corpse.

Pereira, 39, was found not guilty of Mr Shotton's murder, but was found guilty of perverting the course of justice by a unanimous verdict.

Mid-way through the trial, Pereira had given a guilty plea to preventing the burial of a corpse – a charge she had previously denied.