Ex-soldier jailed for murdering couple in Somerset after parking dispute | Crime

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A former soldier who murdered his nextdoor neighbors with a commando dagger after a dispute over parking has been told he will serve at least 38 years in prison before being considered for parole.

Collin Reeves carried out a “brutal and savage” attack on Jennifer and Stephen Chapple at their home in the Somerset village of Norton Fitzwarren while their two children slept upstairs, moments after his wife had told him she wanted a separation trial.

Reeves, 35, pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility but denied murder. However, jurors at Bristol crown court decided he did not have an “abnormality of mental functioning” at the time and convicted him of murder.

Reeves stabbed Jennifer Chapple, a 33-year-old cafe worker, and Stephen Chapple, 36, a teacher, six times each using a dagger he had been presented with when he left the army.

After the verdict, the couple’s family said they would concentrate on bringing up their two sons as their parents would have wanted. “We will now focus on Jennifer and Stephen’s beautiful boys, helping them to live the life that Jennifer and Stephen would have wished for them,” they said.

Reeves claimed he was triggered into action by the bright white of the Chapples’ security light flashing on, reminding him of flares in a war zone. He described being stationed at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan and witnessing colleagues being brought back from patrols horrifically wounded. He said after his tour he had not been given time to “decompress”.

An army spokesperson said they would not talk about individual cases but added: “Our service personnel are our most valued asset and we take the condition of their health and wellbeing extremely seriously.”

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