A Dartford mother of four who arranged for her ex-husband and lover to fight to the death for her affections has been found guilty of murder.

Giedrius Juskauskas, 42, was found dead in a Stratford alleyway on June 17, having been stabbed at least 35 times by Asta Juskauskiene's younger lover, Mantas Kvedaras, 25.

Juskauskiene, 35, of Iron Mill Lane, had been in contact with her ex-husband and new lover in the hours leading up to the murder, and was "key in orchestrating the fatal meeting", according to police.

Giedrius, a Lithuanian national who had been living in London for around a decade, was continuing a physical relationship with Juskauskiene with whom he had a child, despite their divorce in December 2018.

Kvedaras had come to the UK five days before the murder to stay with Juskauskiene, after they began a relationship over social media while he was serving a prison sentence for the sexual assault of a teenager in Lithuania.

The fatal attack took place on in Whalebone Lane, and emergency services were called after a witness found Giedrius lying on the floor bleeding from the neck, but still breathing.

Despite their efforts, Giedrius at the scene shortly after 1am.

A post-mortem examination established that Giedrius had at least 35 separate stab wounds to his body, chest and neck.

Some of his bones had been damaged which suggested severe force had been used by Kvedaras.

Police quickly determined that Giedrius’s murder was likely to be the result of a targeted attack.

In the days afterwards, Juskauskiene arranged the removal of personal documents of Kvedaras’s from her home, where he continued to stay before his arrest.

Juskauskiene, a care worker whose work had been praised by her employer, consistently lied to police during interview and deleted potentially incriminating text messages from her phone.

The couple were both arrested on June 19 and charged with murder the following day.

Detective Chief Inspector Larry Smith said: “Both Juskauskiene and Kvedaras intended to cause serious harm to Giedrius, who will now never see his daughter grow up.

“The level of violence used in the attack was brutal and his last moments must have been painful and terrifying. It is a relief that Juskauskiene will now also serve time in prison for her part in the sinister plan.

“It is clear that both intended to kill or cause serious injury to Giedrius and both are equally responsible for his death. It is better for all that they are not out in society where they could potentially cause harm to someone else.”

The pair will be sentenced on February 7.