A Melbourne banker who killed another man in "six seconds of madness" outside a McDonald's has lost a bid to appeal his murder conviction.
Kyle Sirous Zandipour was convicted of murder for throwing Melbourne University student Joshua Hardy to the ground before kicking and stomping on his head in October 2014.
The assault fatally ruptured 21-year-old Mr Hardy's vertebral artery.
Zandipour (30) was jailed for at least 16 years but he launched an appeal against the murder conviction and sentence, claiming there had been a "miscarriage of justice".
Defence lawyers said Zandipour did not have murderous intent and the sentence was too severe for "six seconds of madness" by a young man with "many outstanding features".
But a panel of three Victorian Court of Appeal judges dismissed the appeals on Friday, to end the long-running case.
The victim's relieved father David Hardy said the judgment gave family and friends some closure and they could now continue to heal.
"It's been a cloud that's been hanging around over us for almost three years now, so to have it finally closed today (is a relief)," Mr Hardy told reporters outside court.
Mr Hardy, with family and friends gathered around him, said the decision sent a strong message that unprovoked acts of violence will not be tolerated in society.
"People who do undertake these sorts of acts are paying the consequence and the court is saying they're murderers, which is quite significant," he said.
Mr Hardy hoped this message of violence being unacceptable would resonate with people across Australia.
"It's not acceptable on the football field. It's not acceptable in the street. It's not acceptable in the home," he said.
"Just think about it and step back before you act."
