Men who beat festival worker to death outside Swansea hotel sentenced to life in prison

Two men who murdered a festival worker in a "two-on-one" assault outside a Swansea city centre hotel have been sentenced to life in prison. Joseph Dix and Macauley Ruddock repeatedly punched Andrew Main in the head as he lay unconscious on the pavement, then claimed they had been acting in self-defence.

Dix and Ruddock were convicted of murdering 33-year-old Mr Main following a two-week trial at Swansea Crown Court. The pair returned to the dock today where they were sentenced to life in prison. They must serve 13 years and 176 days - 14 years less the 189 days they have spent in prison on remand- in custody before they can apply for parole. You can read our coverage of the trial here.

The defendants - who are from Somerset - and Mr Main from Falkirk in Scotland were all working in Swansea in July last year and staying at the same Travelodge hotel on Princess Way. They met for the first time on the night of July 16 in the Coyote Ugly bar on the city's Wind Street, and the meeting seemed to pass without incident. All parties had consumed alcohol and the defendants had also taken cocaine which Ruddock had bought earlier that evening.

The court heard violence erupted outside the Travelodge in the early hours of the following morning which developed into Dix and Ruddock carrying out a "two-on-one" assault on Mr Main. The fight ended with Mr Main swinging punches at Dix and then running off - the defendants pursued Mr Main and Dix knocked him to the ground with a punch from behind to the back of his head. The court heard dad-of-two Mr Main was likely rendered unconscious immediately and then as he lay motionless and bleeding on the pavement Dix and Ruddock punched him in the head while shouting abuse at him. After the assault