A killer returned to a bar with blood on his face after stabbing a man to death.

William Cosier, 34, and Adam Pritchard, 35, punched each other shortly after entering the Queens Head pub in Boughton-under-Blean at around 10.30pm on March 13.

Pritchard went to The Street after a few blows from Cosier, who lifted the stool over his head.

Cozier then followed Pritchard outside and hid behind his back a 22cm knife he had taken from the bar’s kitchen, despite the pleas of a staff member who tried to stop him.

Kent Police said: ‘At one point Mr Pritchard pulled out his BB gun and fired it towards Cosier.

‘The two fought on the road, causing a minibus to veer off the road. ‘Mr Pritchard retreated again, followed by Cozier, and they struggled again before Cozier returned to the bar with bloodstains on his upper body and face.’

Pritchard, suffering from two stab wounds, staggered back to the bar while Cozier fled in his white Mercedes.

Two men began driving him to hospital in a black Peugeot before stopping an ambulance on the road.

Pritchard was pronounced dead at the scene. Police took the BB gun from the trunk of the car.

Cozier surrendered to police the next day and was later charged with murder, a charge he denied.

He was found guilty of murder following a trial at Canterbury Crown Court on 9 October 2024.

Cosier, of Well Lane, Canterbury, was sentenced to a minimum of 25 years in prison on Friday.