A Plymouth man has been jailed for life for murdering his 28-year-old housemate, who he stabbed four times in the back before going out to buy alcohol. Mark Carpenter, 58, of Embankment Road, Plymouth, was sentenced at Plymouth Crown Court on Thursday, 12 November, a day after a jury found him guilty of murder.

Judge Linford imposed a life sentence with a minimum term of 18 years, reduced by six months to 17 years and six months to account for time Carpenter had spent on remand. He will only be considered for release after serving that minimum term.

Stabbed four times, then went shopping

Emergency services were called to the multi-occupancy house on Embankment Road at about 8.22pm on 4 May 2026, after another resident found Harry Jackson unresponsive in a communal hallway. A post-mortem examination found four stab wounds to his back, including injuries that penetrated his shoulder blade and rib cage, and a deep wound to his wrist that severed an artery. Medical evidence concluded he died from catastrophic blood loss. Carpenter claimed he had acted in self-defence, but the jury rejected that account.

The court heard that instead of seeking medical help, Carpenter spent the afternoon and evening buying alcohol, making phone calls, changing his clothes and trying to clean bloodstains from the property. Detectives found Mr Jackson's blood on the knife recovered from the scene, on Carpenter's clothing and on cleaning items. Detective Inspector Joanne Rotchell, of Devon and Cornwall Police, described the killing as a violent and senseless attack and said the force's thoughts remained with Mr Jackson's family and friends.

Sources: Brit Brief, Crown Prosecution Service