CONVICTED killer Omar Benguit plans to appeal against his conviction with the help of a lawyer who has represented high-profile criminals from Saddam Hussein to gangster Kenneth Noye.

Benguit was convicted of murdering South Korean language student Jong-Ok Shin, known as Oki, in Bournemouth on July 2002. He was jailed for life and ordered to serve a minimum of 20 years before he would be considered for parole.

Benguit, of Linwood Road, Winton, was unanimously found guilty of Oki's murder at a third trial at Winchester Crown Court in January this year after two juries failed to reach a decision.

The 33-year-old has now instructed lawyer Giovanni Di Stefano to deal with his appeal case. Mr Di Stefano has also worked on appeals for serial murderer Harold Shipman, Lord Archer and the Kray brothers.

Benguit applied in March for leave to appeal against his conviction.

His application is expected to go before a single judge within the next few weeks and if granted the appeal will be heard by three judges at the Court of Appeal in London.

Oki was stabbed three times in the back as she walked home in Malmesbury Park Road, Charminster.

She died at hospital the same day.

Speaking to the Daily Echo yesterday, Mr Di Stefano said: "This man has been wrongly jailed.

"He should not ever have been in custody or in prison.

"The court of appeal must quash the conviction as a matter of pure law.

"He is stupid but he is not a murderer."

He said Benguit's case will consist of three grounds of appeal.

Firstly, that the crown failed to comply with a section of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 by failing to serve a form to the defence when adducing bad character as evidence.

Secondly that Benguit and his co-defendant - Nicholas Gbadamosi who was later cleared of any involvement in the case - had the same solicitor, resulting in a conflict of interest.

On Tuesday David Morris, who had been given life in jail for murdering three generations of a family with an iron bar, had his convictions quashed after appeal judges heard his solicitor had represented another suspect in the case in the early stages of the inquiry.

Thirdly, Mr Di Stefano argues that taking Benguit to trial a third time was an abuse of process.

Oki, 26, had travelled to Bournemouth to improve her English.

She had finished her course and was awaiting the results when she was killed.

Her devastated parents say they sent her to England because they believed it was a country "full of gentlemen".

First published: May 5