Student accused of stabbing housemate 30 times in garden

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 12 Oct, 16:02 · Archive

Zack Coughlan, 23, is accused of stabbing Jamie Collins, 21, thirty times in their shared garden in Filton near Bristol on 8 April.

Zack Coughlan, 23, is accused of stabbing his housemate Jamie Collins, 21, thirty times in the garden of their shared home in Filton, South Gloucestershire, on 8 April. The prosecution describes the killing as a 'carefully planned and cold-blooded execution'. Coughlan, a final-year student at the University of the West of England studying robotics, is said to have dressed in black, worn a mask and gloves, and lain in wait for Collins to return from university before launching the attack.

According to the prosecution at Bristol Crown Court, Coughlan left Collins dying in the alleyway, then cycled away on his housemate's bike. He dumped the bike at a nearby retail park, bought a change of clothes, and disposed of his bloodstained clothing in a pond. He returned to their home on Cleve Road at about 9pm, cooked a pizza, and played online games with friends.

About eight hours after the attack, Coughlan called 999 and reported that he had found his friend's body in the garden. Police arrived and found Collins in the back garden. Coughlan told officers he had been at the park and had just come home. The jury heard that the defendant accepts he killed Collins but denies murder.

How it is being reported

• Student stabbed housemate 30 times in masked ambushJamie Collins' killer donned a mask and gloves as he lay in wait for the victim to return home.BBC Bristol · 12 Oct, 15:30
• Student stabbed housemate 30 times, murder jury toldThe court heard Zack Coughlan ambushed Jamie Collins in the garden of their homeBristolLive · 12 Oct, 14:12

In this story: Zack Coughlan · Jamie Collins · Bristol Crown Court · Filton · South Gloucestershire · University of the West of England

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem