The gang was armed with golf clubs, baseball bats and iron bars

Zak Mayanja, 18, Narcis Danila, 22, and Christian Sakyi, 18, were in a mob of up to 20 who beat up Eugen Breahna in Bounds Green, north London, in January.

Mr Breahna ran into the ambulance attending another incident thinking he would be safe, the Old Bailey heard.

But the mob, armed with iron bars, followed him in and killed him.

Prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee said during the trial that Mr Breahna, 22, ran into the ambulance believing it would offer him protection.

THE DEFENDANTS Gabriel Alecu, 30, of Upton Park, east London Gheorghe Bechian, 28, of Stevenage, Herts Christian Sakyi, 18, of Barking, east London Bob Tambue, 21, of Dagenham, east London Zak Mayanja, 18, Upton Park, east London Narcis Danila, 22, Newham, east London

"It did not," he said. "The mob descended on him and brought him down and beat him to death. He was murdered in the back of that ambulance."

The gang, of mainly Romanian origin, carried baseball bats, golf clubs, iron bars and allegedly knives, the court heard.

"Their purpose was to seek to confront another smaller group of Romanians who lived near the station, which included the man who was killed," Mr Jafferjee said.

He said the motive for the attack may have been an eastern European turf war over cash machine stands - "something sufficiently lucrative to jealously and violently guard".

The jury has yet to reach verdicts for three other defendants - Gabriel Alecu, Gheorghe Bechian and Bob Tambue.