A GANG of killers who hunted a young father on Oxford's streets before running him down in a car and repeatedly stabbing him have been jailed.

The public gallery at Oxford Crown Court was packed this morning as three men convicted of killing Luciano Dos Santos Almeida were sentenced.

After a trial at the same court two of the killers – Michael Yemane, 20, of South Bridge Row, Oxford, and Welid Solomon, 26, of Field Avenue, Oxford – were found guilty of murder.

Safeen Karimi, 28, of Hode Garth, Thame, was cleared of murder but found guilty of a lesser charge of manslaughter.

A fourth man – who defended himself from the witness box during the eight-week long trial – Sasan Khalid, 19, of no fixed abode, was roundly cleared of any wrong-doing.

During the trial, which began in September, jurors were told that the 'savage' killing began just before 11.20pm on February 27.

An earlier fight between the victim Luciano Dos Santos Almeida and Michael Yemane and Welid Solomon was the catalyst which led to them leaving for reinforcements in a bid to 'mete out some retribution'.

They were joined by Safeen Karimi and after waiting for Mr Almeida on the corner of Southfield Road and Cowley Road Mr Almeida passed the pair.

It was at that moment, as seen in CCTV footage played to the court, that Solomon drove his Kia Picanto directly into Mr Almeida.

Seconds later the 22-year-old father to a young daughter was chased up Southfield Road by two of the defendants who stabbed him multiple times.

Mr Almeida, from Southampton, later died at the John Radcliffe Hospital from his injuries.

Today, Solomon and Yemane were handed life sentences for the killing.

Yemane was jailed for life with a minimum term of 20 years, while Solomon was given a minimum term of 26 years.

Solomon was also jailed for four years, to run concurrently, for perverting the course of justice in setting his car on fire after the incident.

Karimi was jailed for nine years for the lesser offence.

Sentencing, Judge Ian Pringle QC called the attack 'savage' and said both Solomon and Yemane went to the scene armed with knives.

He said the men 'engineered a trap' for Mr Almeida who they saw 'as a threat to [their] drug dealing territory.'