Saudi Gazette report

LONDON — Chaz Corrigan, the main defendant in the murder of Saudi student Mohammed Al-Qassim, pleaded not guilty at the hearing session held at Cambridge Crown Court in the United Kingdom on Monday, claiming that he acted in "self-defense." Another defendant admitted to participating in the crime by assisting Corrigan in committing the crime.

The judge ordered to keep the two main defendants in custody until the trial scheduled for February 2026, Al-Ekhbariya reported. The 21-year-old main defendant faces charges of premeditated murder and possession of a sharp weapon in a public place.

The 20-year-old Al-Qassim was stabbed to death on Friday, Aug. 1 evening in a park south of Cambridge while he was on a 10-week study assignment in Cambridge. Al-Qassim, who hails from Makkah, died instantly after receiving a single stab wound to the neck measuring 11.5 centimeters deep.