A jury in the High Court in Christchurch found Tully guilty of killing WINZ workers Peggy Noble and Leigh Cleveland on Monday September 1, 2014 and guilty of the attempted murder of Kim Adams.

Russell John Tully has been found guilty of murdering two women at the Ashburton Work and Income offices.

Tully stood impassive and looking resigned as the jury delivered its verdicts on the 11th day of the trial, and nodded to Justice Cameron Mander as he was remanded for sentencing on April 15.

A High Court jury in Christchurch took about six hours to find Tully guilty of the murders of Susan Leigh Cleveland and Peggy Turuhira Noble on September 1, 2014.

Leigh Cleveland, left, and Peggy Noble died in the Ashburton Work and Income shootings on September 1, 2014.

Tully was found not guilty of the attempted murder of Work and Income employee Lindy Louise Curtis and not guilty of setting a man trap.

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He was found guilty of the attempted murder of Kim Elizabeth Adams. Tully was also found guilty of unlawful possession of two shotguns.

DEAN KOZANIC/FAIRFAX NZ Russell John Tully has been found guilty of the murders of Peggy Turuhira Noble and Susan Leigh Cleveland.

People in the public gallery – many of them have stayed throughout the trial – remained quiet as the verdicts were delivered.

The verdicts came after almost six hours of deliberations in the High Court at Christchurch. The Crown said the 49-year-old homeless man bore a grudge about his treatment by WINZ.

Peggy Noble's family issued a statement through a police officer after the verdicts were delivered. The family said they wanted to acknowledge the support they had received.

"[The family is] thankful for the strength which each witness displayed to reach this outcome. [Our] love goes out to all the victims affected by this tragedy," the statement said.

The Crown closed its case against the 49-year-old on Friday afternoon, after seven days of calling evidence from more than 70 witnesses.

Closing arguments were made by both sides on Tuesday morning, and the judge summed up the case before the jury retired to consider the verdict about 4pm.

They returned to court at 9.30am on Wednesday to review CCTV footage of the shooting rampage, then deliberated much for the day.

On Wednesday afternoon the jury asked to see a transcript of the defence's closing address but Justice Mander declined. He reminded the jury they needed to reach their verdict on evidence.

Shortly after 3pm the jury returned to the courtroom to deliver the guilty verdict.

MINISTRY 'RELIEF' AT VERDICT

After the jury delivered their verdicts the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) chief executive Brendan Boyle said his main thoughts were for murder victims Peggy Noble and Leigh Cleveland, and their families.

He said he wanted to acknowledge the pain and suffering their families and all the victims and their families had been through.

"It's a relief to get to this point, to get the verdict but I will always be thinking of what happened on that day."

He was grateful for the result, which Boyle said was a small step forward in the recovery of the individuals and the organisation.

An inquiry showed MSD had taken all reasonable steps to prevent such a tragedy but the events were extreme, the individual was well motivated and was armed with a dangerous weapon.

The trial had been very difficult for staff, he said, and they had found it difficult to relive the events of that day.

"I saw bravery and courage...I'm incredibly proud of them."

WINZ STAFF FOUND TULLY 'QUIETLY INTIMIDATING'

Tully was absent from court for most of the proceedings, but appeared in court on Friday restrained in a chair with manacles.

Earlier appearances in court had led to his removal after he disrupted proceedings by shouting and talking over Justice Cameron Mander.

Tully had no lawyer of his own, but was represented in court by two amicus curiae (friends of the court), James Rapley and Phil Shamy.

Andrew McRae and Mark Zarifeh represented the Crown.

McRae said the shootings arose from Tully's grievances with Work and Income over his earlier dealings with them.

He had been trespassed from the Ashburton Work and Income office a month before the shootings, with staff finding him "demanding", "manipulative" and "quietly intimidating".

Over the course of the trial, the jury heard Tully's rampage took just 61 seconds.

He entered the Ashburton office at 9.51am on September 1, 2014, and fired at Noble, who was on the reception desk, killing her almost instantly.

People then began running from the premises.

Tully fired at Adams as she fled to a back room. She told the jury of feeling a "swish go past my face really close".

He then found Curtis hiding under a desk with a client, and fired at her. As he fired, she lifted her leg and was hit in the thigh rather than in the body or head – potentially life-threatening injuries.

Curtis told the jury she played dead to avoid being shot again.

"I thought I was history and I was wondering who was going to look after my family."

Tully then moved to the back of the building where he saw another of his specific targets, Cleveland. She was the staff member he was most dissatisfied with. He shot her three times, killing her.

The shotgun Tully used in the shootings was never found, but a second shotgun found when he was arrested after a six-hour manhunt was exhibited in court.

He was tracked to a farm west of Lake Hood and found with a piece of paper stating the words: "Kim Adams, Leigh Cleveland. Discrimination." The Crown said that showed his intentions and his grievances.

Tully had been held in custody at Christchurch Men's Prison since his arrest.