Cambridge student murder suspect took cocaine and cannabis, jurors told

A man accused of killing a 20-year-old language student in Cambridge took cocaine and cannabis, a court heard.

Mohammed Algasim's body was found in Mill Park on the night of August 1 last year.

He was on a 10-week placement at the EF International Language Campuses, close to where he was fatally stabbed.

Chas Corrigan is on trial for the murder of Mr Algasim, which he denies.

'I'd smoke cannabis every day'

Corrigan, 22, told Cambridge Crown Court today (Monday) that he would "use cocaine and cannabis, quite often in a week.

"I’d smoke cannabis every day and I had a lot of friends that did cocaine, so it was quite accessible."

Barrister Ruby Shrimpton, prosecuting, told jurors that blood and urine sample tests taken around 18 hours after the attack showed Corrigan was taking cocaine and cannabis.

The results also showed Corrigan was drinking, but toxicologists believe it is unclear how much alcohol he had drunk before his arrest.

Knife from kitchen drawer

The trial's already heard from prosecutors, who claim Corrigan stabbed Mr Algasim with a kitchen knife.

Corrigan told the court he took the knife from a kitchen drawer inside his friend's flat before leaving for the Earl of Derby pub in Cambridge, off Hills Road.

Asked by defence barrister Jane Osborne KC why he chose to take a knife to the pub, Corrigan said he had "bad issues with people in that area".

Jurors heard that Corrigan had suffered past injuries to his fingers, leg and shoulder from knife wounds.

Previously in the trial, Ms Osborne said Corrigan "had a kitchen knife tucked into his waistband rather than in the pocket."

'He jumped up at me'

Jurors have seen CCTV footage of Mr Algasim sitting on a low wall outside student accommodation near Cambridge's train station before he was stabbed.

The court has heard from Abdullah Bin Shuail, a fellow student of Mr Algasim.

He said he heard Corrigan say something to Mr Algasim, when Corrigan first approached, but could not hear what this was or whether Mr Algasim said anything in reply.

Corrigan walked away towards the station and Mr Bin Shuail said he heard Mr Algasim say something to the defendant but "could only make out one word, 'centre',", prosecutor Nicholas Hearn said.

Corrigan told jurors he felt Mr Algasim was "quite aggressive with the way he jumped up at me; I stepped away from him."

Earlier in the trial, Ms Osborne said Corrigan carried a knife " so if he was attacked, as he had been in the past, he could frighten off any attacker."

"He wanted to prevent himself being a victim of violence again."

The trial continues.

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