Kiwi friends of murdered teenager Emily Longley say hearing the evidence in the trial of Elliot Turner has been emotional.
Turner, 20, was convicted overnight of murdering Longley after nine hours of deliberation from a jury at Winchester Crown Court in England.
Longley, who was born in England, lived in New Zealand and attended West Lake Girls High School on Auckland's North Shore.
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Her parents said she moved back to England in 2010 to live with her grandparents after "falling in love with Brockenhurst College", where she attended a business studies course.
For her friends on Auckland's North Shore the grisly details of her murder have been difficult to bear.
"It's been really hard seeing all the news, seeing what he actually did, it's just been hard," friend Julia Herbst said.
Another friend, Chelsea Armitage said she stopped following the case "because it was just too horrible".
Longley's friend Victoria Clark said Turner's guilty verdict is a relief.
"I'm glad that he's getting what he deserves, but it's just hard to think about her that way," Clark said.
The 17-year-old was known as the life of the party.
"She was really funny and really beautiful, all the girls wanted to be her and all the guys wanted to be with her," Clark said.
The friends say they will hold on to the good memories they shared with Longley.