Student admits murder of housemate stabbed 30 times in ‘cold-blooded execution’

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A student who waited for his housemate in hiding before stabbing him has admitted to killing him.

Jamie Collins, 21, died in the garden of the home he shared with housemate Zack Coughlan, 23, in Filton, South Gloucestershire.

The robotics student at UWE Bristol was ambushed in the alleyway and stabbed repeatedly on the evening of April 8 by Coughlan, dressed in all-black and wearing a mask.

The attack, described as a ‘carefully planned and cold-blooded execution’ by the prosecution, was caught on CCTV, which Mr Collins’s brazen killer showed to the police after they arrived.

Bristol Crown Court heard how Coughlan left him dying outside at about 6pm as he cycled away on his housemate’s bike.

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Jamie Collins, 21, was about to finish his robotics degree and return home to Swansea when he was murdered (Picture: Avon and Somerset Police / SWNS)

Coughlan, also a robotics student, had first denied the murder charge before changing his plea to guilty today.

It comes after Mr Justice Linden ruled that Coughlan’s partial defence of manslaughter by reason of loss of control could not be left to the jury to consider as part of their murder charge deliberations.

The two students lived in the £300,000 three-bedroom house owned by Coughlan, and were both in their final year.

After cycling away from the crime scene, Coughlan dumped the ride at a retail park and bought a change of clothes.

His bloodstained clothes were stuffed into bags weighed down with bricks before he threw them into a pond.

He returned to the shared house on Cleve Road at about 9pm, where he popped a pizza in the oven before gaming with friends.

CCTV captured the moment Zack Coughlan cycled away on Mr Collins’s bike after the killing (Picture: Avon and Somerset Police / SWNS)

Eventually at about 2am, he called 999 claiming he just discovered his housemate in the rear garden.

The 23-year-old was first treated as a witness before detectives found his blood on Mr Collins’s bike, and his mobile phone data matched the killer’s movements.

Clothes recovered from the lake were found containing blood and Coughlan’s DNA.

Bloodsoaked clothes were found in a duck pond around one-and-a-half miles from the crime scene (Picture: Avon and Somerset Police / SWNS)

Zack Coughlan was dressed in all black and worse a mask while waiting in hiding for his housemate (Picture: Avon and Somerset Police / SWNS)

The brazen killer told a university friend he wanted to organise a memorial for Mr Collins after the murder.

The student’s family described him as a ‘caring young man’ who was deeply passionate about equality and that ‘his unapologetic inclusivity will be his legacy for all of us.’

He was just two pieces of coursework away from graduating at the time of his death.

The family said: ‘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.’

Coughlan will be sentenced tomorrow morning.

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Moment hero builder duels with samurai swordsman using just his spirit level

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A have-a-go hero managed to fend off a man armed with a samurai sword using only his spirit level.

Aaron Messenbird, 32, was caught on camera swinging a sword and threatening members of the public in Milton Keynes on July 30.

Carrying the sword, he approached a small group of people who hanging out by a van.

He made threats towards them and ‘raised the weapon in a threatening manner’, police said.

One brave member of the public tried to wrestle the blade off him to protect his friends but suffered serious injuries to his hands, including a damaged tendon and a rib injury.

Builder is seen wielding a spirit level as a weapon to scare off Messenbird (Picture: Thames Valley Police)

Soon, two other men ran at him, one holding a spirit level forcingMessenbird to flee.

A short time later, Messenbird was seen walking along Silbury Boulevard while still carrying the sword.

He was arrested on August 5 and charged the following day.

Aaron Messenbird was jailed for a year (Picture: Thames Valley Police)

Investigating officer PC Jordan Buchanan-Kay, of the Central Milton Keynes Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: ‘This was a violent and unprovoked incident in which Messenbird threatened members of the public with a potentially lethal weapon before assaulting a man who had stepped in to protect others.

‘The victim suffered painful injuries, including damage to a tendon in his hand, as a result of Messenbird’s actions.

‘I would also like to acknowledge the bravery of the members of the public who intervened and helped prevent this incident from becoming far more serious. Their actions undoubtedly contributed to protecting others from harm.

‘However, we would always urge people not to put themselves in danger when confronted with somebody carrying a weapon. The safest course of action is to move to a place of safety and call 999 immediately, providing as much information as possible to help officers respond quickly.

‘I am pleased that Messenbird has been given a custodial sentence and hope this outcome provides reassurance to the victims and the wider community that violent offending involving weapons will not be tolerated.’

Messenbird, of Wandsworth Place, Bradwell Common, Milton Keynes, was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment at Aylesbury Crown Court.

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Chelsea star urged to leave after Xabi Alonso snub

Estevao is struggling for game-time at Chelsea (Picture: Getty)

Estevao Willian has been urged to leave Chelsea after failing to break into Xabi Alonso’s first-team this season.

Estevao, 19, enjoyed a promising first season at Stamford Bridge, scoring eight goals in 36 appearances in all competitions.

Chelsea beat a host of rival clubs to the signing of Estevao in 2025, agreeing a deal worth over £50m with Brazilian side Palmeiras.

Estevao is regarded as one of the best young players in the world and has already earned 14 caps for Brazil, scoring six goals for his country.

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The teenage sensation was expected to kick on this season but has found first-team minutes hard to come by and is yet to start a game in the Premier League.

Estevao was an unused substitute in Saturday’s win over Everton and is said to be growing frustrated with his situation in west London.

Reports suggest Estevao could look to force through a move away from Chelsea in January and former Blues winger Scott Sinclair believes that outcome could be in the best interest of all parties.

Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso (Picture: PA)

‘As a young player, all you want to do is play football,’ Sinclair told Andy’s Bet Club. ‘In my experience, having been on loan six times during my spell at Chelsea, you just want to be playing for your parent club.

‘But when you aren’t, you have to go out on loan to gain experience and game time.

‘The longer you go without playing, the less match-fit you become, which makes it even harder to get into the side when an opportunity arises and that leads to doubt.

Chelsea beat Everton last time out (Picture: Shutterstock)

‘Only Estevao can decide what is best for him, but because he is so young, getting consistent game time is essential and having been in the same position, I’d say he should go and play.’

Chelsea hero Pat Nevin can also envisage a scenario in which Estevao agitates for a move away from Stamford Bridge.

‘I wouldn’t be surprised,’ he told GOAL. ‘Now it’s not exactly “you should leave, go now”.

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‘But your career only lasts a certain amount of time and you need a lot of games under your belt. And by the time you’re 20, 21, you kind of want a couple of hundred.

‘If you’re really top level, that’s who you are. You’re not getting bits of games here and there, you are an established player. And the real great players tend to have that.

‘Started very early, which he did, have great talent, which he has, and then play a lot of games and understand the importance of life within a game. And it’s a bit of a shame because it’s not happening.

‘So I wouldn’t be shocked if he looks elsewhere to get a game. On the other hand, if you’re Chelsea, you think, “what happens if Rogers or Palmer get injured? We need somebody.”

‘And it’s the classic difficult situation that players in the modern game find themselves in. But a player of that talent, don’t waste it on benches all your life. I get a feeling he won’t.’

Alonso has attempted to play down the growing speculation over Estevao’s future at Chelsea, insisting he will ‘have his moments and more minutes’.

Chelsea suffered a wobble before the international break but thrashed Bournemouth 5-1 last weekend before Saturday’s win at Everton.

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Hollyoaks Imran and Cindy stars confirm how far deadly revenge on Ste goes

Imran and Cindy are the culprits behind Ste’s vanishing(Picture: Lime Pictures / Metro)

Hollyoaks stars Ijaz Rana and Stephanie Waring have confirmed that Imran Maalik will go all the way in the plot he formed with Cindy Cunningham to punish Ste Hay (Kieron Richardson).

Ste vanished without a trace back in August, sparking a two-month long investigation into his disappearance, with both the villagers and viewers at home scrambling for clues in a bid to find out what happened.

With suspects such as James Nightingale (Gregory Finnegan), Lucas Hay (Oscar Curtis) and Sienna Blake (Anna Passey) thrown in the mix, all with potential motives aplenty, it proved a very difficult mystery to solve.

But after weeks of speculation, Hollyoaks finally revealed what happened to Ste and who was to blame, with Imran and Cindy – who fell in love in secret in LA a year earlier – having plotted revenge on the chef.

Now that’s a twist!

Discussing the big story turn, Cindy star Stephanie Waring told Metro: ‘Initially it was a wish of Cindy’s to get justice for what happened to Ella, and she expresses this to Imran when they are in LA.

Cindy encountered Imran in LA – and together they talked about Ste (Picture: Lime Pictures)

‘What unfolds is obviously kidnapping, which really comes from Imran. This really shocks Cindy that he has gone this far, and he convinces her to go along with it. But Cindy has the moral compass in all of this and she is really trying to stop everything.’

Steph told us that Imran is certainly the ‘more dangerous’ of the two. ‘Imran is more dangerous than Cindy,’ she reiterated. ‘He’ll go to the lengths. He can’t back down. It feels like he has to see this through at any cost.’

Ijaz, meanwhile, reveals that Imran and Cindy’s connection was born out of their trauma. ‘It is one of the common grounds that they have,’ he explained. ‘They connect on their trauma mutually caused by Ste. It is one of the early things they connect on.

Imran is very much the one driving the revenge plot (Picture: Lime Pictures)

‘For Cindy, it is just something to talk about but Imran wants to turn it into action and actually get revenge on Ste.’

While Stephanie confirmed that Imran is the one pushing this vendetta, she can also understand why her on-screen love is pursuing this revenge mission, given all the damage Ste has caused over the years.

‘There’s not been a comeuppance for Ste, he hasn’t paid for any of the crimes he’s committed,’ said the star. ‘It feels like there has not been justice. There is a valid reason for them to do this. I am kind of behind Cindy and behind Imran.’

Ste vanished in a shopping centre in August (Picture: Lime Pictures)

Ijaz was on a similar wavelength. ‘Ste kind of deserves what coming to him because he is not always the nice person everyone thinks he is!’, he said.

Discussing what’s to come next, Stephanie revealed that Cindy’s cold feet over the plan will play a pivotal role in upcoming scenes.

‘Cindy is trying to talk Imran down and try to actually stop what’s happening – and she goes off on her own to try and find Ste and just end it.’

Ijaz added: ‘There’s a lot of tension. A lot of drama – naturally. A lot of figuring out what is the right thing to do between the two characters’.

Hollyoaks streams Mondays to Wednesdays from 6am on Channel 4’s streaming platform, or catch episodes on TV at 7pm on E4.

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Mikel Arteta explains Eberechi Eze half-time substitution vs Nottingham Forest

Arsenal midfielder Eberechi Eze (Picture: Getty)

Mikel Arteta defended his decision to haul Eberechi Eze off at half-time in Arsenal’s tense 1-0 win against Nottingham Forest.

After registering his first goal of the season in the midweek Champions League victory over Lille, Eze retained his place in the starting XI for the trip to the City Ground.

The England international has struggled for regular game time so far this term, but any suggestion he was set to kickstart his campaign was quickly dispelled during a non-descript 45 minutes.

Indeed, it was no surprise when Eze was hooked at the interval and replaced by the eventual matchwinner Noni Madueke.

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Asked to explain the early change, Arteta said: ‘The way they were defending, the two units outside, the two midfielders were creating without having a real threat in behind of just forcing Munoz to a different type of game. They were more comfortable.

‘That’s what we have, different players with different qualities and adapt to what the game is delivering.’

Eze was seen slumped in the dugout during the second period as his teammates ground out the three points that kept them within touching distance of leaders Manchester City.

Eberechi Eze of Arsenal is challenged by Jair Cunha of Nottingham Forest (Picture: Getty)

‘Three days a go he scored a goal, he should have scored three and we were all happy,’ said Arteta when asked for a reaction to Eze’s apparent dissatisfaction.

‘This is football, one day is brilliant and especially with attacking players to play a team which defends with 10 players around the box, the nine dropping almost at the edge with that chemistry it’s extremely difficult to get in there.

‘That’s why you need fresh legs, a different profile and try fresh things.’

As well as Madueke, it was the contribution of fellow ‘finishers’ Jurrien Timber, Viktor Gyokeres and Mikel Merino who helped get the defending champions over the line.

Noni Madueke scored for Arsenal (Credits: RYAN BROWNE/Shutterstock)

Arteta added: ‘Some of them played three days ago and some of them will start the next game and they know that everyone has to be at it. If you are needed after 60 minutes, 45 minutes and sometimes two minutes – we have a squad now that can deliver in moments and we have to use that.

‘Noni [Madueke], Jurrien [Timber], Mikel [Merino] was brilliant when he came on and Viktor [Gyokeres] really changed the game – all of them did and that’s what we need. Noni obviously the highlight because he scored the goal and that’s the difference.

‘Sometimes you can get frustrated with teams who are difficult to break down. First half we didn’t have a shot on target and that’s something we discussed. We had another two big ones in the second half but the only one on target we had was a little deflection and it’s in.

‘Great reaction [after scoring goal], to have the will to defend a really open and difficult and stressful situation.’

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Emmerdale spoiler video shows terrified Belle getting the worst possible news

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Belle Dingle’s (Eden Taylor-Draper) happy life with Kammy Hadiq (Shebz Miah) is about to come to a halt in Emmerdale next week, as she receives news that Tom King (James Chase) is being released from prison.

In 2023, Tom arrived in the village and quickly connected with Belle which eventually led to them starting a relationship.

This was the start of an absolutely horrific ordeal for Belle. As part of a domestic abuse storyline, Tom exerted sinister, coercive control over the much-loved character.

From psychological abuse and cyber-stalking to harming the family pet, Piper, Tom’s actions left Belle terrified and isolated from her friends and family.

Tom’s behaviour led to him going to prison, but upcoming episodes of the ITV soap will see Belle learn that he’s being released early.

Tom King was sent to prison after abusing Belle (Picture: ITV)

In this new video, all is well in Belle’s world. She’s chatting with Sam (James Hooton), Lydia Dingle (Karen Blick) and Kammy about Cain Dingle’s (Jeff Hordley) recent fishing trip.

As Kammy leaves for work, sorry, t’work, he opens the door to a Victim Liaison Officer. Lydia and Sam assume she’s arrived ahead of Samson Dingle’s (Sam Hall) release from prison, but the woman confirms she’s actually at Wishing Well to see Belle.

She reveals that Tom is getting out of prison and, obviously, the news leaves Belle absolutely terrified.

Reeling in the aftermath of the news, things get even worse for Belle when Charles Anderson (Kevin Mathurin) reveals that Tom has been speaking to him in his role as a prison chaplain.

The officer will tell Belle that Tom cannot legally come anywhere near her (Picture: ITV)

Belle decides to visit Tom in prison (Picture: ITV)

Not only that, Charles reveals that Tom has accepted culpability and wants to seek Belle’s forgiveness.

Growing anxious, Belle can’t believe Tom’s already back in her head and he hasn’t even been released yet. With her mind racing, she decides to confront the issue by visiting Tom herself.

But how will Kammy and Cain feel about this?

Discussing his return to the show, James Chase said: ‘Stepping back into Tom’s shoes is a responsibility I don’t take lightly. He is a character driven by obsession and a desperate need for control, and it is both fascinating and challenging to step back into that mindset.

‘The audience knows exactly who he is and what he is capable of, so the challenge now is to show the lengths he is willing to go to in order to get what he wants, even if it means dismantling Belle’s life all over again. It’s a dark path, and I’m ready to see how far Tom will push it.’

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Delta Goodrem breaks down in tears responding to Johannes Radebe on Strictly Come Dancing

Delta Goodrem was in pieces watching Strictly Come Dancing (Picture: Instagram/Delta Goodrem)

Delta Goodrem broke down in tears watching tonight’s Strictly Come Dancing after being forced to miss Icons Week due to injury. 

The Australian pop star confirmed she wouldn’t be bale to compete on the show this week after sustaining a rib injury in training that’s already put her in hospital twice. 

Instead, she’s watching at home and weeped after hosts, Emma Willis, Johannes Radebe, and Josh Widdicombe paid tribute to the Lost Without You singer as they opened the show.

After introducing all of the contestants by the names of the icons they’d be impersonating, Emma explained Delta’s absence to viewers. 

She began: ‘Before we get started you might notice there is one couple missing. Sadly, Delta has suffered an injury and on the advice of the medical team will not be dancing this week under the rules of Strictly she receives a bye through to next week.’ 

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Johannes continued: ‘Delta my darling I know you’ll be watching so I just want to say we are all sending you so much love.’ 

The singer said she was determined to recover in time for next week’s show (Picture: Instagram/Delta Goodrem)

The Strictly Come Dancing hosts paid tribute to Delta to open Icons Week (Picture: BBC)

And the former pro was spot on, as the former Neighbours actress was not only watching from home, she was in pieces as she watched the love in the studio for her. 

‘I love you too,’ she said, blowing a kiss to the trio of hosts in a video she captioned: ‘Thanks team. It’s been a rough week. Love you guys!’

Ahead of tonight’s performances, Delta shared another message with fans promising she is determined to recovery as swiftly as possible. 

She said: ‘Hello everybody! I just wanted to say hello before Strictly starts, I’ve got my little seat ready and I’ve been recovering. 

‘I promise I’ll share more over the next couple of days, it takes a while to get not a positive mindset when you have a setback and you just need to be able to process it and work out what the body is saying and how we continue to move through this but in the meantime I’m very excited to see the amazing talented class of 2026. I’m so exited to watch them do their iconic performances tonight.’ 

Delta has been top of the leaderboard on Strictly Come Dancing (Picture: PA Wire)

She added: ‘I’m sorry I’m not there for this one but I’m giving it everything I’ve got to be there next week.’

On Monday, Delta released a statement saying she was ‘absolutely gutted’ to be missing the next round of the contest.

I’ve been loving every second of this experience, so having to sit this one out is heartbreaking – especially after the high of Saturday night,’ she said.

‘I cannot tell you how much I love being a part of this magical show.’

Last Saturday, Delta and her partner Kai Widdrington topped the leaderboard with 33 points and scored the first nine of the series for their Disco themed Salsa. 

Strictly Come Dancing continues tomorrow night on BBC One. 

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