THE cousin of a murderer broke down in tears when convicted today of concealing the killer’s clothes in a neighbour’s garage.

Steven Wood hid the bag of clothing worn by Anthony Wood, who had been involved in the fatal stabbing of St Helens teenager Jordan Campbell.

The defendant denied attempting to pervert the course of justice by hiding the incriminating evidence but a jury at Liverpool Crown Court this afternoon unanimously found him guilty.

Wood, 26, broke down in tears and adjourning sentence Judge Andrew Menary, QC, warned him: “Inevitably there will be a custodial sentence".

Wood, of Lord Street St Helens, has been on bail but the judge has now remanded him in custody until January 9 when he will be sentenced along with Michaela Hoather, 28, of Havelock Close, St Helens, who pleaded to the same offence the day Wood’s trial began.

Judge Menary has already warned her to expect a custodial sentence.

During his three day trial the jury of seven women and five men heard how the emergency services were called to a fire in Tickle Avenue, Parr, on January 1 2015.

The body of 17-year-old Jordan Campbell, who had been stabbed in the back, was found inside the building.

Later in the morning officers spoke with both Steven Wood and his cousin Anthony Wood about the murder. Anthony was filmed by an officer’s body-cam during a stop check of his car.

Anya Horwood, prosecuting, said that on March 6 that year Daniel Wiltshire and Ruben Hoather pleaded guilty to murdering the teenager. Anthony Wood, was later tried at the city’s crown court and was found guilty of the murder.

She said that Steven Wood left the clothes that his cousin had been wearing on the day of the murder with his neighbour Leanne Brereton after making up a story about having a row with his mother. Miss Brereton agreed to the request and put the bags in her garage.

But when Leanne Brereton’s niece heard that he had left bin bags at the house, she became worried and contacted the police.

When officers searched the address on they found a knotted black bin bag in the garage. Inside were two further bin bags. Inside the third bag police found a black and white Supply and Demand T shirt, black and blue Adidas tracksuit pants and orange boxer shorts.

Miss Horwood said that these were the clothes that Anthony Wood was wearing when police carried out a stop check of his car on the morning of the murder.

A forensic examination later revealed that the t-shirt and tracksuit trousers had blood spots on them which matched Jordan Campbell’s DNA.

One of the trouser legs had been damaged by fire.

There was no DNA match between the bags and the three killers, she said. When the bags were tested for finger or palm prints there was a match with Steven Wood.

Wood told the jury that a girl he knew had asked him to look after some bagged clothing for her.

He decided to leave the bag with a neighbour because he was often away from home and it would be easier for her to pick up the bags from Leanne Brereton’s garage.

He told the police the bag contained underwear so he did not look inside it.