A dad-of-two on trial for murdering a child rapist told a jury he "exploded" when the paedophile bragged about his sick past.

Giving evidence at Maidstone Crown Court today, Simon Brown said his "skin crawled" as 71-year-old William Rowe laughed when shown a KentOnline report of his conviction in November 2012 and then dismissed the abuse as "a bit of fun".

Brown, who said he had not met the pensioner before the night of the fatal attack, described how he then lashed out in a "blanket of rage" he could not control.

The two men were at the home of a mutual friend, Rose Ripley, in Mercury Close, Borstal,when violence flared in the early hours of September 4 last year.

Brown, 28, said it was during a chat about prison that Ms Ripley used a phone to reveal the news report, headlined 'Dartford rapist William Rowe locked up for brutal sex attacks on young girl two decades ago'.

The article detailed how he had been found guilty of three offences of rape, three of indecent assault and one of indecency with a child. It also included a reference to Mr Rowe's earlier conviction in 1984 for indecent assault of another child.

Describing the pensioner's reaction to the report, Brown told the jury: "Rose asked me if I had ever been to prison and I said 'No'. She said 'Bill's been to prison, haven't you Bill?'

"He said 'Yeah' and then she showed me an article about him raping a child. She said 'Look, that's what you have been to prison for, isn't it Bill?'

"He was sort of smiling, smirking. I asked Bill 'Did you do that?' and he said 'Yes, it was only a bit of fun', laughing.

"I just couldn't believe it. I was shocked, to be honest. I asked him 'Did you actually rape her?' and he said 'Yeah, she wasn't the first and probably won't be the last.'

"I can remember just seeing his eyes. His teeth were really bad and he just had this evil look about him.

"It made my skin crawl that he could be laughing about an innocent child."

Brown said he then walked towards Mr Rowe, who had been sitting on a sofa, and punched him.

Asked by his barrister David Hislop KC about his mood, he continued: "It's hard to explain. I was just so angry and I couldn't fathom what he was doing. It made me explode."

Brown told the court he had been on the point of leaving Ms Ripley's home, only to react on hearing the sex offender's boast about the abuse not being "the first or last time".

"I just kept thinking he had raped an innocent child and I exploded. I can't remember how many times I hit him.

"I hit him, he hit me back, I hit him a couple more times and he fell over," explained Brown, adding that he could not recall if Mr Rowe's blow landed.

"I can remember him falling onto the ground. I stood over the top of him and carried on hitting him."

Asked by Mr Hislop whether he was able to control himself, Brown replied: "No, it was like a blanket of rage, a blur, to be honest with you."

He was also unable to tell the jury due to "a mixture of bad memory and rage" how many times he had punched the pensioner or where the blows landed on his body.

But he estimated the assault lasted "not even a minute" and that Ms Ripley, who was also in the room, did not try to stop him.

"It felt like it happened instantly," Brown told the court. "It was just happening quickly."

He said that he stopped and having then realised Mr Rowe was unconscious, he pulled him up off the floor and propped him against the sofa.

Brown said he was worried about his fast and shallow breathing and wanted to call an ambulance but that Ms Ripley told him she "didn't want police at her door".

He added that he realised the man was injured but maintained he had not intended to cause him really serious harm or to kill him.

"God no. Definitely not. No," Brown told the court.

Asked what state he was in, he added: "I was in bits, all over the place. I wanted to ring police and an ambulance but Rose said 'He's fine, he's just unconscious' but I was panicking."

The jury heard he made several calls over the next few hours, including ones to his mum, because he "didn't know what to do and wanted advice".

"I was a mess. I wasn't thinking straight. I was pacing up and down the room. I knew at the back of my mind I needed to ring an ambulance but Rose assured me he was just unconscious," explained Brown, who until his arrest worked repairing underground cables.

"He was breathing but it just didn't feel right. The whole thing wasn't right. He was on the floor unconscious and I knew at the back of my mind I should have rung the police and ambulance but I panicked and didn't."

Brown and Ms Ripley were captured on CCTV leaving her house - him walking a few metres ahead of her - at about 4.30am.

They later visited the home he shared with his mum, Kay Brown, in Snowdon Close, Chatham, as well as local shops before returning to Mercury Close later that night.

Brown said he had just assumed the pensioner "would have got up and went" by the time they got back.

However, on seeing Mr Rowe's Rover car still parked outside the house, they drove it away - Brown telling the court Ms Ripley had a key - and, having arrived back at his mum's home the following morning, police were alerted.

Ms Brown, who made the 999 call, later told officers how her crying son had told her: "Mum, I've beat this man up. I think I've killed him. He was a nonce, Mum. He brutally raped a two-year-old. I just beat him up. I went mad."

Police found Mr Rowe's lifeless, blanket-covered body still propped upright against a sofa and sitting on the bloodstained living room carpet with his head and upper body tightly wrapped in a towel.

He was partially-clothed in a T-shirt, underwear and one sock, and had sustained multiple injuries.

These included a significant one to his brain, fractures to his nose and eye area, lacerations and bruising. Several rib fractures were inflicted on both sides of his body and a tooth had also been knocked out.

A pathologist concluded that he had been punched, kicked and possibly stamped on during a sustained assault, with cause of death given as blunt force trauma to his head, neck and torso.

At the start of Brown's trial, the jury was told he accepts the injuries he inflicted led to Mr Rowe's death.

However, prosecutor Julian Evans KC said the contention that he never intended to cause serious harm or to kill his victim was "simply not true" and "wholly undermined" by the severity of the injuries suffered.

Brown's assertion that he did not know Mr Rowe, who had been decorating Ms Ripley's home, is also disputed by the prosecution.

Body-worn camera footage of the moment police arrived at Brown's home following the 999 call showed him breaking down in tears and vomiting as he repeatedly claimed Mr Rowe had been "bragging and laughing" about child rape.

He later told officers however that the thought of killing the convicted paedophile "never crossed my mind".

Brown maintained during his evidence to the jury that he had not been responsible for wrapping the towel around Mr Rowe or covering him with a blanket.

He also agreed with Mr Hislop he "regretted" his beating of Mr Rowe and, when asked if he had intended to lose his temper, Brown replied: "No, no, I didn't. No."

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Brown's mum gave a statement to police which was read to the jury.

She explained he had been diagnosed with ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) when he was 10 years old. He was prescribed medication but had stopped taking it due to his high blood pressure.

The mum of three also spoke of her son's "drunken rages" in which he would damage her property, and that recent "outbursts" were due to his relationship break-up and not having a home of his own.

Ms Brown described herself as being "hysterical" when he told her of his assault on Mr Rowe.

"All Simon kept saying was 'He was a nonce, Mum.'," she told police. "He kept saying he was sorry. He said he didn't know if he was dead but thought it was.

"I'm in complete shock by this. Simon has a temper but I can't believe that this has happened."

The court was told Ms Ripley, 34, was also arrested on suspicion of murder but later released without charge.

The trial continues.