Non-parole period set for Falconio's killer

DARWIN - Bradley John Murdoch will spend at least 28 years in jail for the murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio.

The Broome mechanic will be 73 when he is first able to apply for parole.

Murdoch, who is now 47, received a mandatory life sentence earlier this week after a Northern Territory Supreme Court jury found him guilty of murdering Mr Falconio beside the outback Stuart Highway four years ago.

He was also found guilty of assaulting Mr Falconio's girlfriend Joanne Lees and depriving her of her liberty.

Chief Justice Brian Martin today set a non-parole period of 28 years, and described the killing as cowardly.

"Your conduct in murdering Mr Falconio and attacking Ms Lees was nothing short of cowardly in the extreme," Justice Martin said.

- AAP