Zack Coughlan, 23, has pleaded guilty to the murder of his housemate Jamie Collins, 21, who was stabbed 30 times in the garden of their home in Filton, South Gloucestershire. Coughlan, who dressed in all black and wore a mask and gloves while lying in wait, changed his plea after a legal ruling by the trial judge.
Attack Caught on CCTV
The attack took place shortly before 6pm on April 8 this year, after Mr Collins cycled home from UWE Bristol, where he was studying robotics alongside Coughlan. Mr Justice Linden ruled that Coughlan's partial defence of manslaughter by reason of loss of control could not be left to the jury. The judge told the jury: "You will have just heard that the defendant has changed his plea to the indictment to guilty. That means that he now admits the charge of murder."
Prosecutor Adam Vaitilingam KC told the jury: "This was a carefully planned and cold-blooded execution." The attack was captured on CCTV installed at the house, which Coughlan showed to police officers who initially treated him as a witness.
Attempts to Cover Up
After the stabbing, Coughlan cycled away on Mr Collins' bike, which was later dumped at a nearby retail park. He bought a change of clothes and threw his bloodstained garments in a pond, weighed down with bricks in a carrier bag. He returned home at about 9pm, put a pizza in the oven and played online games with friends.
At around 2am, Coughlan called 999 claiming he had just found Mr Collins' body in the rear garden. However, blood on the bike and mobile phone analysis matched his movements, and he had injuries to his hands. He told people who saw him bleeding that he had fallen while climbing trees.
Family's Statement
In a statement issued after the guilty plea, Mr Collins' family said his death had "affected our family in a deep, profound, and lasting way." They added: "Our family has been sickened that Zack Coughlan pretended to help Jamie when in fact he is responsible for killing him. We even felt sympathy for Zack at the start, and asked police if he was okay, because of how he had initially deceived everyone."
Detective Chief Inspector Lucy Edgeworth, who led the investigation, said: "Coughlan made out he was scared of Jamie and said he lost control out of fear for his life. Not a single shred of evidence to support that claim was found during our investigation and it was not an account he shared with police during three interviews after he was arrested. In court Coughlan admitted to lying in the hours and days after the murder. Yet he still tried to turn the tables and blame Jamie for the vicious murder he committed, when Jamie is tragically no longer able to defend his name." Coughlan, of Cleve Road, Filton, will be sentenced tomorrow morning.
