Robotics student admits killing housemate but claims self-defence in court
Robotics student Zack Coughlan, 23, has admitted killing his housemate Jamie Collins, 21, but denies murder, saying he feared for his life. The case matters because a jury at Bristol Crown Court must decide whether Coughlan’s claim of self-defence explains the killing.
Coughlan accepted that he was the masked figure seen on CCTV ambushing Collins as he returned home in Filton on 8 April, and that he left Collins in an alleyway for nearly eight and a half hours before calling 999. Collins suffered 30 stab wounds, according to the article. The two final-year UWE Bristol students had argued over rent; Coughlan said Collins had threatened him, while he also described feeling stressed and overwhelmed in the weeks before the killing.
- Coughlan admits killing Collins but denies murder.
- He says he acted out of fear for his life.
- He left Collins in an alleyway for nearly eight and a half hours.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Coughlan’s strongest case is that he genuinely believed Collins posed an imminent threat, and that he used force to protect himself rather than acting with murderous intent. If the jury accepts that account and finds the force reasonable in the circumstances as he perceived them, self-defence may explain the killing despite its grave outcome.
The case against
The prosecution’s strongest case is that the ambush, the number of stab wounds and the long delay before calling for help point to a deliberate attack rather than an immediate act of self-protection. A dispute over rent or feeling stressed would not by itself justify lethal force; the jury must assess whether his claimed fear was genuine and whether his actions were necessary in the circumstances.
Read the full article at the source →
Originally published by Daily Mail as “University robotics student admits killing housemate and leaving body in an alleyway for eight hours before calling 999”.