Home Affairs Correspondent
A Construction worker who stabbed a Saudi Arabian student to death in a shocking and unprovoked attack after a night of heavy drinking and drug use has been jailed for life.
Chas Corrigan, 22, murdered 20-year-old Mohammed Algasim outside student accommodation near Cambridge railway station on August 1, 2025.
On June 4, a judge ordered Corrigan to serve a minimum of 22 years and six months behind bars after a jury found him guilty of murder.
Corrigan’s father, Peter Corrigan, was also sent to prison after helping his son cover up the crime and evade arrest.
Cambridge Crown Court heard how Algasim, a Saudi national studying at a language school in the city, had been spending time with friends near the railway station on the night he was killed.
Corrigan, then aged 21, approached a group of strangers. He later said he was carrying a kitchen knife for protection after previously being assaulted, and that he had initially gone over to ask for a lighter.
The court heard he briefly walked away before turning back after believing he heard shouting directed at him. Moments later, Algasim was stabbed in the neck.
CCTV footage shown to jurors captured Corrigan approaching the group, leaving, and then returning shortly before the fatal attack.
Although he denied murder, Corrigan admitted carrying the knife, claiming he only intended to scare people and never meant to cause injury. Jurors rejected his account.
The court heard Corrigan had spent the evening drinking heavily at the Earl of Derby pub and taking cocaine before carrying out the attack.
After hearing the evidence, jurors took just two hours to convict him of murder.
The devastating impact of Algasim’s death was laid bare during the sentencing hearing.
His father, Yousef Al Qasim, told Mr Justice Dias, “Instead of witnessing his achievements, I was confronted with the unbearable reality of receiving his lifeless body.”
The court also heard a victim impact statement from Algasim’s sister, Shatha Al Qasim, both statements being read aloud by a family member.
Meanwhile, Peter Corrigan, 51, admitted assisting an offender after helping his son conceal evidence following the killing.
CCTV footage captured him at 9.04am on August 2 removing the blood-stained high-visibility jacket his son had been wearing during the attack from bushes in Vinter Terrace before throwing it into a wheelie bin.
Police also discovered that he had helped his son avoid arrest by allowing him to hide at a property on Holbrook Road. For his role in helping his son, Peter was sentenced to two years in prison.
Following the sentencing, Crown Advocate Cheryl Williams said Corrigan’s claims of self-defence had been comprehensively dismantled by the evidence.
“Corrigan claimed he acted in self-defence, but the evidence clearly showed this was not the case,” she said.
“This was a fatal and cruel act of violence which has had a devastating impact on Mohammed Algasim’s family and friends.
“Nothing can undo their loss, but I hope today’s sentence provides some measure of justice.”
Detective Chief Inspector Dale Mepstead, who led the investigation, said Algasim’s death had robbed a young man of his future. “Mohammed was a young man with his whole life ahead of him, and his death has had a profound impact on all who knew him,” he said.
In a statement released after the trial, Algasim’s family said, “This has been a very difficult journey for our family. Losing Mohammed has left a deep void in our lives… Whilst nothing can bring him back, today’s verdict recognises the seriousness and brutality of how his life was taken.”
