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An Auckland High Court jury on Thursday night found a Hungarian tourist not guilty of murder, but guilty of the manslaughter of an Auckland man.
Ferdinand Ambach, 32, a dive master in Hungary, beat Ronald Brown with a banjo before ramming the neck of the instrument down his throat.
The court was told Brown, 69, took Ambach back to his Onehunga home after meeting him in a bar.
There was a misunderstanding between the men, with Brown wrongly thinking Ambach was gay and a heated argument broke out.
The jurors spent a total of about 12 hours over three days, including almost all day Thursday, considering their verdict before delivering their decision about 6.30pm.
Brown's battered body was found at his flat in the early hours of December 7, 2007. He died three days later in hospital after his life support was switched off.
The jury, three men and nine women, was told Brown was assaulted with a 2.7kg banjo.
The Crown said he was struck a number of blows on the head before Ambach rammed the broken off neck of the banjo down his throat.
He was remanded in custody for sentence on August 28.
