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London: Barry George was cleared on Friday of the murder of BBC presenter Jill Dando after a retrial at the Old Bailey.
His defence lawyer William Clegg had argued that the 48-year-old lacked the skills, ability, motive and expertise to have committed such a crime.
George is expected to be freed later after eight years behind bars.
Dando, 37, was shot at point blank range with a gun pressed against her head on the doorstep of her home in Fulham, west London, in April 1999.
Her murder shocked the nation and prompted one of Scotland Yard's biggest murder investigations.
Crown Prosecution Service lawyer Hilary Bradfield said it was right to bring the case, despite the not-guilty verdict after an eight-week trial.
Before arresting George, detectives examined a wide range of theories. One was that she was killed by a Serbian, angry that she had presented a TV fundraiser for Kosovan refugees.
Others suggested she was killed by an ex-lover or by an underworld hitman for her work helping the police on the BBC's "Crimewatch".
George, who stalked women and took thousands of photographs of them as they walked home, was first convicted of her murder in 2001. He lost an appeal against his conviction in 2002.
Dando was one of the most popular figures on television and thousands of viewers turned out to pay their respects at her funeral in her home town of Weston-super-Mare, Somerset.
She was engaged to gynaecologist Alan Farthing at the time of her murder.
Chronology
The following is a chronology of the main events in the case:
April 26, 1999: Dando is shot outside her home in Fulham, west London. She was killed by a single gunshot to the head.
May 25, 2000: Police arrest unemployed musician Barry George at his home, less than a mile from Dando's house.
May 28, 2000: George, who called himself Barry Bulsara and claimed to be related to the late Queen singer Freddie Mercury, is charged with murder.
February 26, 2001: He goes on trial at the Old Bailey.
July 2, 2001: George is jailed for life after being found guilty of murder.
July 29, 2002: The Court of Appeal upholds the conviction.
December 16, 2002: The House of Lords rejects an appeal by George against that decision, saying the evidence was "compelling".
September 5, 2006: BBC's "Panorama" says a new interpretation of the forensic evidence casts doubt on George's conviction.
June 20, 2007: Criminal Cases Review Commission refers the conviction to the Court of Appeal.
November 5, 2007: George begins second appeal.
November 15, 2007: He wins the appeal and gets a retrial.
August 1, 2008: George is cleared of murder at the Old Bailey.
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