A GARAGE owner has been jailed for more than 15 years for the manslaughter and unlawful burial of bomb disposal expert Mark Manning.

Colin Gale, 40, of Offington Lane, Worthing, was found guilty of the manslaughter by the majority of the jury at a trial last year.

He was cleared of the murder of his friend Mr Manning, 54, from Lancing, at the garage he ran, P&B Car Sales in Western Road in Worthing in April 2014.

He admitted the unlawful burial of Mr Manning.

This morning at Lewes Crown Court judge Shani Barnes sentenced him to 15 years and eight months.

Stewart Robertson, 51, of St Aubyns Road, Portslade, who was with Gale when they disposed of Mr Manning’s body, was found guilty of preventing the lawful burial of a corpse.

He was sentenced to four years.

Both will serve half the time in custody and half on licence taking Ito account time they have already served.

Mr Manning had worked for the Mines Advisory Group, a charity backed by Diana, Princess of Wales, which removes landmines and other hazards in some of the world's poorest countries.

He also bought and sold cars. His last assignment was to the Philippines to help in the wake of the Typhoon Haiyan disaster, which killed more than 5,000 people in February 2014.

Mr Manning’s son Kane said the whole experience of his death, the murder investigation and the court case was “awful”.

In a victim impact statement read out in court by prosecutor Duncan Atkinson, the 18-year-old said: “This has affected my life.

“My grandad passed away, he had cancer. He was heartbroken, not knowing where he was and didn’t get a chance to say goodbye.”

He told how it had caused him to miss a lot of college and it had been “too much”. It meant he had to attend to funerals in the last year.

He said: “I’ve come to the point where I’ve had enough, I’m finding it really hard knowing he will not be around to see the man that I become.

“I thought I could trust Colin Gale. When dad disappeared I trusted him. Now this has come out now I feel I hate him for what he has done.”

Anna and Russell Manning said they “struggled” to put into words how their brother’s death had affected their lives.

A statement said they were “totally devastated” by the loss.

The court heard how Ms Manning, who “adored” her brother, was no longer able to work, eat and cries on a daily basis.

They told how they believed their father had died with a “broken heart”, adding: “It put him through so much pain. He died knowing Mark’s death was being treated as a murder investigation.

Judge Shani Barnes, sentencing, said Gale’s behaviour in attempting to cover up the killing was “extraordinary”, “systematic” and “callous” after he became anxious about his financial situation.

She said: “You’re a man who lies easily. You say what you need to say to keep [people] at bay. In your evidence you said you gave Mark Manning the run around.

She said he deliberately “misdirected” the police and continued with his bank holiday weekend with friends and family after the killing and while returning to bury his body.

Judge Barnes said the statements from the Mr Manning’s family expressed the “enormity” of Gale’s actions when he killed him.

She said he got Robertson to do “all the jobs he couldn’t be bothered to do.”

Addressing Robertson, she said: “You knew this was an unlawful killing, you knew you were helping to prevent a lawful burial but on the other hand, despite your previous convictions, you did eventually lead the police to his body without which he may never have been found.”

Both stared motionlessly at the wall while the jail terms were handed down.