Man jailed after fatally stabbing housemate

A man has been jailed for 15 years after fatally stabbing his housemate following an argument.

Amritpal Singh was sentenced on Wednesday after he killed Amit Kumar at a house in Sawley Street, Leicester, on 5 October last year.

Singh was cleared of the murder of 32-year-old Kumar but was found guilty of manslaughter after a trial at Leicester Crown Court in March.

Leicestershire Police said Singh tried to hide the knife used in the incident in a rubbish bin.

The force said the stabbing happened following a disagreement between the men who had both been drinking at a house they shared with two others.

Singh, 44, fled the address moments after paramedics arrived, taking the knife with him.

CCTV from the area showed Singh throwing the knife into the back garden of a home in Osmaston Road, before moments later using a bin to climb into the garden to retrieve it.

Footage then showed him walking along the road with the knife before opening another bin and dumping it inside, where officers later found the knife in a torn black bag.

Singh was arrested at a friend's house later that morning, police added.

After he was arrested, Singh claimed he was defending himself and that he had stabbed Kumar by accident.

Senior investigating officer, detective chief inspector Tim Lindley, said: "Amritpal Singh claimed he stabbed Mr Kumar by accident, but he had told the other two housemates not to mention there had been a fight.

"This makes it clear that he knew exactly what he had done and made the decision to leave the scene with the knife before police arrived.

"Once he left the house, it is clear from the CCTV that his aim was to get rid of the weapon.

"He threw the knife into a garden before retrieving it and then disposing of it in a wheelie bin.

"By putting it in the bin, I think he hoped it would not be found before the bins were emptied, but luckily this was captured on camera and officers were able to recover it."

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