The teenager who murdered a Matalan manager in a botched robbery was jailed for life today.

Jamie Simpson, from Herne Hill, was stabbed and killed in the botched raid on Matalan in 2008.

Kobina Essel, 19, of Manor Park, east London, was given a minimum 20 year sentence for the murder of Mr Simpson in March 2008.

Armed with a 10inch knife, Essel approached Mr Simpson and stabbed him in the neck and back. He then fled empty-handed with his assailants in a waiting Ford Fiesta.

Edmonton man Roy Williams, 31, of Snells Park, was cleared of murdering 33-year-old Mr Simpson after the Old Bailey trial, which ended last month.

Williams had worked at the store for seven months and was good friends with the victim, was said to have been the gang's "inside man".

He told six other men how to gain entry to the store and avoid CCTV cameras.

He was found guilty of conspiracy to rob, as were Jammal Chambers, 18, of Poplar, and Duane Owusu, 20, of Manor Park.

Anthony Maina, 20, of Canning Town, Randy Osei-Owusu, 17, of Poplar, and Simeon Jumah, 25, were all convicted of manslaughter.