Demetrios Angelis acquitted of murdering Lien Angelis in 2008

A man who was convicted in 2010 of killing his estranged wife is now a free man after the jury in a new trial found him not guilty on Thursday.

Demetrios Angelis, now 44, was initially charged with manslaughter in June 2008 after his estranged wife, 42-year-old Lien Li Angelis, was found dead of asphyxiation in a west-end apartment.

The manslaughter charge was later upgraded to second-degree murder and a jury convicted Angelis of that upgraded charge in 2010.

A new defence lawyer, Howard Krongold, appealed the conviction at the Ontario Court of Appeal, arguing that Angelis was defending himself during a physical altercation with his estranged wife.

The Court of Appeal granted Angelis a new trial in 2013.

He was granted bail soon after with conditions and remained on bail until Thursday's acquittal after two-and-a-half days of jury deliberation.

Co-counsel Oliver Abergel said he credits the acquittal to heavy scrutiny of the pathology as well as new testimony from a key witness.

Abergel said that despite the victory, he has "no idea how we render him whole."

"He spent years in jail, he's lost his job," Abergel said.

Angelis had been a senior policy analyst with the Public Health Agency of Canada before he was charged and convicted. Abergel said he's recommended that Angelis seek legal counsel to see about getting his job back.