University student gets life sentence for murdering housemate in ambush

A twenty-three-year-old student must spend at least twenty-eight years in prison after admitting to murdering his university housemate. Zack Coughlan wore a mask and black clothes to ambush twenty-one-year-old Jamie Collins in the garden of their shared home near Bristol on April eighth. Coughlan stabbed his victim thirty times after lying in wait for him to return from university. After the attack, Coughlan left the dying student in an alleyway and cycled away to throw away bloody proof before finally calling the police eight hours later. Coughlan initially denied the charge and stood trial at Bristol Crown Court, but he changed his plea to guilty on Tuesday. Both young men were in their final year at the University of the West of England. During the sentencing, Justice Linden stated that the killer had planned the attack for some time and that the guilty plea came only when conviction was certain. The judge also described the victim as an idealist who cared deeply about societal problems.

Context

Violent crimes involving students living together are rare, but rental disputes or personal tensions can sometimes escalate tragically. Courts typically impose strict life sentences with long minimum terms for premeditated attacks involving weapons. The University of the West of England is a major higher education institution located near Bristol with thousands of enrolled students.