A Dublin man has been sentenced to eight years, with the final year and a half suspended, for the manslaughter of a German student in 2012.

Another Dublin teenager was sentenced to nine years with the final two suspended for the murder of the student.

Thomas Heinrich (22) and Robert Rinker (25) were stabbed on St Anthony’s Road in Rialto on December 1st, 2012.

Mr Rinker, survived but Mr Heinrich died as a result of the injuries he sustained.

Wesley Kelly (20) of St Anthony’s Road in Rialto, had pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter at the Central Criminal Court yesterday.

This was accepted by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Having previously denied both charges, Kelly was found guilty of assault causing harm to Mr Rinker by a majority verdict of 11 to 1.

The jury failed to reach a verdict as to whether he was guilty of murdering Mr Heinrich.

The 17-year-old had pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Heinrich and to assault causing harm to Mr Rinker.

However the jury found him guilty of both charges by unanimous decision in May after almost eight hours of deliberations over three days.

The court heard today Mr Rinker was fortunate not to have lost his life having been stabbed several times.

In addition, he suffered post-traumatic stress disorder and both physical and psychological scarring.

The court heard previously Mr Heinrich had sustained three fatal stab wounds and was bleeding heavily from his stomach before the fire brigade were called and he was removed from the scene.

State Pathologist Professor Marie Cassidy said the cause of death was a stab wound to the abdomen, hemorrhage and shock due to blood loss.

Mr Justice Barry White said that sight is often lost of the fact that the victim has parents.

In this case, he said that Thomas Heinrich was an only child and that the suffering of his parents was “likely to persist for the rest of their lives”.

Mr Justice White said both men had ‘blighted’ their own lives and they would henceforth be known as “killers”.

He reminded both that this would adversely effect future employment prospects for them.

He said the 17-year-old, who cannot be named because of his age, was “fuelled with drink” and was the “ringleader and instigator”.

He told the court the Director of Public Prosecutions had advised that these offences were at the upper range of seriousness.

Mr Justice White said the aggravating factors were the nature of the offences themselves including the use of knives and the element of premeditation.

However, he said a mitigating factor was the ages of the guilty parties and their previous good character.

In a victim impact statement read to the court the parents of the deceased described “crippling depression” they were suffering as a result of the “sudden violent death” of their son.

The parents of the deceased, Wolfgang and Alexandra Thom Heinrich today said they are “relieved that this chapter is closed” describing Thomas as a bright young man who was very sociable.

“He (Thomas) made many friends back at home as well as here. He was very helpful and very much against violence.”

“We are now at the stage where we have to re-invent our lives and go forward and do something different.”

Mr and Mrs Heinrich said an important part of their life going forward is the scholarship they have set up with Griffith College, which they describe as a living memorial of their son.

Mr and Mrs Heinrich said they had nothing but praise for the gardai and the justice system adding that the incident doesn’t reflect on Ireland.