Lincs: Trio of students are jailed following the death of a fellow student

Three University of Lincoln students who admitted drugs supply charges following the death of a first year have been jailed by a judge at Lincoln Crown Court.
Standard In Court LogoStandard In Court Logo
Standard In Court Logo

The three were all arrested after Ashley Hughes, 19, from Gatley, Cheshire died on December 17, 2014, after collapsing at his student home in Danesgate House in Lincoln city centre.

Ashley, who only began his studies three months earlier, took two ecstasy tablets and later in the evening fell ill. The drugs were later found to be twice the strength of normal ecstasy tablets.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Tony Stanford, prosecuting, said: “Ashley Hughes was very inexperienced with drugs. He took two tablets together.

Some hours later he began showing signs of distress and was overheating. His friends tried to cool him down with cold showers and they took him outside.”

The teenager collapsed and was rushed to the city’s County Hospital but was pronounced dead a short time later.

A postmortem later confirmed the cause of his death as a drugs overdose.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Ashley’s friend Luke Green admitted buying the drugs for him from fellow student Reis Bilal after they pooled their cash to get eight tablets.

The inquiry revealed that Bilal obtained drugs from a third year student, Haydn Watson, although it could not be proved it was the batch that killed Ashley.

Reis Bilal, 19, of Ruston Way, Lincoln, admitted being concerned in the supply of MDMA and a further charge of supplying MDMA to Luke Green on December, 16. He was sent to a young offenders’ institution for two years.

Luke Green, 19, of Grantham Street, Lincoln, pleaded guilty to two charges of being concerned in the supply of drugs between October 18, and December 17, 2014 and also admitted possession of MDMA on December 16. He was given 12 months at a young offenders’ institution.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Haydn Watson, 21, of High Street, Lincoln, admitted charges of being concerned in the supply of MDMA and cannabis and was jailed for three years.

Judge Michael Heath, passing sentence, said: “This case is a stark and tragic example of what, from time to time, happens when people take drugs.

“A quite dreadful end and a tragic end to a life full of promise.”

Related topics: