Man arrested in blood-splattered pants found guilty of Melbourne fisherman’s murder

A homeless man arrested in blood-splattered pants has been found guilty of stabbing an unsuspecting fisherman to death. 

Forrest Stevenson, 38, denied he was the one who attacked Andres Pancha, 45, at Frankston Pier in Melbourne’s south-east in June 2024.

But a Victorian Supreme Court jury on Thursday found him guilty of murder after close to three days of deliberations.

Jurors found Stevenson attacked Pancha on the pier after approaching him about 6am on June 29.

Using a knife, Stevenson stabbed the older man 101 times, including 31 blows to the head and neck, and 40 to the torso.

Another fisherman who was about 100 metres away called Triple Zero while Stevenson fled the scene on foot.

Paramedics arrived at 6.12am to find Pancha lying in a pool of blood with no pulse.

Police immediately reviewed CCTV footage and identified the attacker as a man in a green jacket.

About 80 minutes after the fatal stabbing, Stevenson was found lying in shrub, dressed in a green jacket with blood-stained black pants.

Pancha was a likely contributor of the DNA found on Stevenson's pants, Crown prosecutor Kristie Churchill KC told jurors

She said the CCTV of the man leaving the scene matched footage of Stevenson in the Frankston area before the attack.

But defence barrister Amy Brennan told jurors the man in the footage was not her client and the pants he was arrested in were not his. 

Jurors began their deliberations on Tuesday morning and returned their guilty verdict on Thursday afternoon.

Pancha's family broke down into sobs and hugged each other after the verdict was handed down.

They declined to speak to the media after the verdict.

Stevenson will face a pre-sentence hearing at a later date.

- AAP