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BBC MUNDO RADIO
Five members of a family have been found guilty over the death of a vulnerable man whose headless body was found in a lake.
Michael Gilbert was kept as a slave and tortured for his benefit money before being left to die alone, cold and in agony.
His decapitated body was found dumped in the Blue Lagoon, a disused quarry in Arlesey, Bedfordshire, in last May.
His head and other body parts were not discovered until February this year.
James Watt, his girlfriend Natasha Oldfield, and his brother's girlfriend Nichola Roberts have been convicted of Mr Gilbert's murder.
Murderers: Natasha Oldfield, James Watt and Nicola Roberts
James' brother Robert Watt and his mother Jennifer Smith-Dennis were found guilty of familial homicide following the trial at Luton Crown Court.
A third brother, Richard Watt, had previously admitted familial homicide.
Their father, Antonio Watt, had already been cleared of familial homicide and has now been acquitted of perverting the course of justice.
Mr Gilbert's family - who attended every day of the trial - gasped as the jury returned unanimous verdicts.
His mother, Rosalie White, has described him as being like "an adolescent even when he was a grown man".
Michael Gilbert's butchered corpse was found at a Bedfordshire beauty spot
It was only when two anglers spotted his headless corpse at the picturesque lagoon last May that the details of Mr Gilbert's ordeal began to emerge.
Held prisoner in an upstairs room at the Watt home in Luton, the court heard how Mr Gilbert was beaten for fun and the violence filmed on mobile phones.
Geoffrey Birch, defending Jennifer Smith-Davies, described the home as a madhouse and "a menagarie of dogs, lizards and snakes".
Mr Gilbert was hit with bats, shot, stabbed and once made to goad a large pet lizard until it attacked him.
Tortured: Michael Gilbert
Oldfield's diary included plans for a game show where contestants would pay £5 to slap him and £25 to headbutt him.
He tried to escape, but on at least two occasions was recaptured. At night he was padlocked and during the day he was stripped to his boxer shorts.
By January of last year the daily beatings had left him on the brink of death.
Police are at a loss to explain why Mr Gilbert received such treatment from a family he regarded as his own.
He was effectively adopted by them around eight years before his death after meeting James Watt at a children's home.
Detective Chief Inspector Jon Humphries, senior investigating officer, said: "(They) may have derived some sense of power and control that they didn't have in the rest of their lives."
DCI Humphries has denied anything could have been done to save the young man.
He added: "A number of agencies were involved with Mr Gilbert over the years and I think all did their best at the time."
Discarded blood-stained carpets at the Watt family home tell a grim tale
The Luton Safeguarding Of Vulnerable Adults Board has announced a serious case review.
Mr Gilbert's family have said he enjoyed a happy childhood but spent time in care and drifted apart from them.
They believe he had kept silent about the abuse to protect them.
His brother, 29-year-old Aaron White, said: "Michael knew the Watts would eventually catch up with him and it would mean more hassle for his own family. I think that's why he kept quiet."
Sister Chrissy White, 31, added: "We never knew the true extent of what was happening because Michael never told us.
"It wasn't like he would arrive bruised or injured - it was like he was sort of friends with them."
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