January 3, 2001 14:23: A former Arsenal footballer was one of a vicious gang who brutally stabbed a university graduate and left him to bleed to death.

Ex-youth player Kevin Dennis, his brother and two relatives were found guilty of murdering 23-year-old Batatunde Oba after a petty fight at an Ealing nightspot turned nasty.

The group, 'intent on trouble', jumped on Oba when he tried to calm an argument between Dennis and another clubber at the Broadway Boulevard nightclub on December 29, 1999.

He was stabbed nine times in the back of the head, chest, stomach, arms and legs. There were also cuts to his body caused by broken glass.

Seven bouncers, one of whom was also stabbed, eventually managed to haul the gang off the victim.

Oba was then rescued by his friends, but later died at Ealing Hospital.

Dennis, 23, of Hackney, his brother Desmond Dennis, 24, also of Hackney, Carl Dennis, 26, of West Norwood, and Stefan Williams, 26, of Tottenham, were all found guilty of murder and violent disorder at the Old Bailey on December 18.

The men had all protested their innocence and one of the defendants clapped the jury as it returned its verdict, while another shouted: 'This is some stitch-up'.

Carl Dennis and fellow gang member Zackarias Mehta, 24, of Kenton, were also found guilty of two charges of possession of a firearm with intent after a high-speed car chase several days after the attack.

DS Grant Mallon, who led the year-long murder investigation, praised the Ealing public for its help with information regarding the attack and identification. The men will be sentenced on January 26.