A Peckham man has been found guilty of stabbing his flatmate to death during an apparent drunken argument in January last year.
Alvaro Mendoza Sillerico, 28, of Rye Lane, was found guilty at the Old Bailey today murdering of 39-year-old Juan Olmos-Saca.
Sillerico, also known as Uziel Mendez, will be sentenced at a hearing tomorrow (Wednesday January 30.)
Officers had launched an investigation after being called to a Rye Lane flat shared between Sillerico and Mr Olmos-Saca on January 29 2018.
Police found Mr Olmos-Saca barely conscious in a communal stairway suffering from a stab wound to the chest and he was rushed to a south London hospital.
However, he died as a result of the severe injuries on February 2. A post-mortem gave the cause of death as a stab wound to the heart.
The court heard that Sillerico had spent the evening drinking with friends in Camberwell before returning to the flat, where he was described by other occupants as “agitated.”
Sillerico claimed he had become intoxicated and pushed Mr Olmos-Saca down the stairs.
Six men, including Sillerico – who was found asleep by police after the murder – were arrested at the scene.
Sillerico was initially charged with attempted murder on Thursday, 1 February but was charged with murder following Juan’s death.
The other five were released with no further action.
Detective Chief Inspector John Massey, from the Homicide and Major Crime Command, said: “This violent death appears to have stemmed from a drunken argument which occurred at the flat where the two men lived. It is tragic that someone can lose their life in such a trivial way.
“Sillerico attacked Juan leaving him fatally injured. It would appear that he alerted others some time later but provided a number of different, conflicting accounts of his actions that night to the other residents and police.
“I hope that today’s conviction provides some comfort to Juan’s family as they face a future without him.”