A man has been remanded in custody charged with the murder of his housemate in Filton.
Zack Coughlan, 23, was arrested following the death of student Jamie Collins at a house in Cleve Road. Emergency services were called to a garden to the rear of the property, where both men lived, in the early hours of Thursday April 9. Jamie had a number of stab wounds and was pronounced dead.
Coughlan appeared before Bristol Magistrates on April 14 and was remanded pending a further hearing at Bristol Crown Court in June. There was no application for bail.
Jamie, 21, from South Wales, was studying robotics at the University of the West of England.
In a statement, his family said: “Words cannot describe how we are feeling as a family right now. Our Jamie was a bright, kind, gentle and unassuming young man with his whole life ahead of him.
“He was looking forward to finishing his Uni journey and planning to come home to us in Swansea in just a few weeks’ time.
“We know he was heading for a hugely successful future following his engineering and robotics degree.
“We are continuing to work with and be supported by Avon and Somerset Police at this excruciating time.
“The outpouring of love and support from Jamie’s friends and ours has been completely overwhelming and we would like to thank everyone for their kind messages while we continue to grieve privately.”
A UWE Bristol spokesperson said: “The university is deeply shocked by the news of our student Jamie’s death in such distressing circumstances.
‘”Our thoughts are with Jamie’s family at this extremely sad time.
“As well as studying robotics, Jamie was also an active member of student societies at UWE Bristol.
“The university will support students who studied with Jamie and staff directly affected by his death. We have been liaising closely with the police to support their investigation.”
Avon & Somerset Police are continuing their enquiries and are appealing for CCTV and dashcam footage to assist with the investigation. They are keen to hear from anyone with CCTV covering the nearby section of the A38 Gloucester Road North, Cleve Road, North Way and College Way between the hours of 3pm on Wednesday 8 April and 3am on Tuesday 14 April.
They would also like to hear from anybody who may have seen anything suspicious in the area or who may otherwise have information which could assist with our enquiries.
Superintendent Karen Corrigan said: “We know this incident will come as a shock to the community, as well as to those who knew the victim, and we understand a number of people may have been in the area at the time of the incident. We would appeal to them to contact us as soon as possible with any information they may have, no matter how small or trivial it may seem.”
Anybody with information which could assist police are asked to call them on 101 quoting ‘5226096397’ or through the Major Incident Portal that can be accessed via the Avon & Somerset Police website.
You can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via its website. No personal details are taken, information cannot be traced or recorded, and you will not go to court nor speak to police when contacting Crimestoppers.