Ex-paratrooper, 36, and ‘soulmate’ wife, 35, turned their Welsh farmhouse into a ‘fortress’

• Francis and Cassie Collins were discovered at their home in Devon in 2021 
• For confidential support call Samaritans on 116123 or visit www.samaritans.org 

A ‘devoted’ married couple who killed themselves in a suicide pact after ‘struggling with health conditions’ made their home a fortress.

Cassie Collins, 35, and Francis Collins, 36, were discovered on September 11, 2021, by a family member who had become concerned for their welfare.

Mrs Collins, a student nurse, and Mr Collins, a former paratrooper, were said to have been together for 11 years after meeting in a call centre. 

The couple were ‘joined at the hip’, but following the launch of a police investigation against Mr Collins were said to have been worried that everything could be taken from them. Locals told how they would have floodlights out at their fortress-like home all night.

One neighbour told The Sun: ‘I know you shouldn’t speak ill of the dead, but Collins caused so much misery to so many people around here that I feel compelled to say the world is a better place without him in it.’

An elderly couple claimed he subjected them to a campaign of terror after they complained about one of his Doberman dogs trying to attack them.

A villager added: ‘He’d put a fake machine gun on the bonnet of his Army jeep and park up in front of the couple’s home, blaring out loud music.

‘He’d threaten them and send them vicious emails from fake accounts, but they knew it was him.’

Mr Collins had previously been handed a 425-day prison sentence after throwing homemade firebombs onto a neighbour’s drive.

The firebomb followed a civil dispute over the ownership of a piece of land where they lived in Wales, which also saw Mr Collins bombard the couple with threatening emails. The couple relocated to Cullompton, Devon in late 2020.

An inquest held into the deaths at Exeter coroner’s court this week heard that three of their five dogs were also found dead at their home. Police later discovered their two larger dogs had recently been put to sleep at the vets after claims they had been involved in an attack. 

The inquest heard that in the lead-up to their deaths the couple had carried out tasks including creating a joint will and sending letters and emails.

In a statement read out during the inquest, Mrs Collins’ sister Jodie said the pair had spoken in the past of wanting to end their lives. 

She received a letter through the post from her sister on September 11, 2021, in which she apologised for being unable to cope with the pain she was in anymore.

After gaining entry to her home, Jodie found Mrs Collins lifeless in her bed cuddling three of their dogs – a chihuahua and two miniature pinschers – who were also deceased. Mr Collins was found dead in the hallway.

Jodie added: ‘Cassie had said a couple of years ago that if there were going to kill themselves they would kill the dogs as well as they wouldn’t want anyone else looking after them.’

The dogs were described as being like their ‘children’ because due to Mrs Collins being in so much chronic pain she was not able to have children. Her sister said she had previously spoken about not being able to live with the pain she was in and that the pending police investigation had left the couple ‘really low’.

Mrs Collins, who was born in Exeter, was said to have endured years living in chronic pain due to knee and shoulder injuries that left her unable to work and often bedbound. 

She had been referred to NHS service Talkworks and was discharged in August 2021 after reporting she did not have suicidal plans. 

Mr Collins, who was born in Hereford, was said to have been diagnosed with adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) while living in the USA and had a long history of depression and anxiety. He had previously made an attempt to end his life. 

He was assessed by Talkworks in May 2021 and found to have severe psychotic depression with daily suicidal thoughts and was urgently referred to the NHS mental health team.

Mr Collins told them how when he was ten his father ended his life. He was found to be suffering from ongoing back pain, financial stress and was worried about the police investigation. He was put under the care of the community mental health team and was awaiting an ADHD assessment.

Mrs Collins’ mother Deborah Coombes told how the pair had begun living together in Heavitree, Exeter, and then moved to Chelmsford in Essex where Cassie did her nurse training. However, just weeks before she was due to finish she caused further damage to an existing knee injury while exercising.

She was not able to work again afterwards or complete her training. After moving to Thailand the couple were involved in a moped accident and both injured their backs.

Mrs Coombes said: ‘Since then is when her really significant pain started. She spent most of her time in bed in agony. She described it as like rubbing sand into a cut all the time.

‘She regularly rang in tears about being unable to cope with the pain.’

The couple later moved to Wales – where the dispute with a neighbour took place. They relocated to be with Mrs Collins’ family before Christmas 2020 after Mr Collins served eight months in prison.

Mrs Coombes had been aware her daughter had struggled with suicidal thoughts but hoped she would not act on them. She said it was her belief that the culmination of pain she was in, their ‘troubles’ in Wales and the latest police investigation had led to her death.

She added: ‘I can 100 per cent say Francis wouldn’t have killed her. They were devoted and soulmates and he said if anything happened to Cassie he would kill himself as she was everything to him.’

A post-mortem examination stated the cause of Mrs Collins’ death was the combined toxic effects of two drugs. The cause of her husband’s death was asphyxia. He was also found to have taken a substantial amount of anxiety drug alprazolam which was ‘likely’ to have caused intoxication.

A police investigation confirmed there was no third-party involvement or suspicious circumstances surrounding their deaths. During a search of their home, a video of Mrs Collins – dated September 8 – was recovered stating she was going to take her life and that she would not be in pain anymore. End of life notes were also found in the property.

The coroner recorded a conclusion of suicide for both deaths. 

In March 2021 it was reported that Mr Collins had moved to Devon for a fresh start. 

A court in Wales heard details of the firebombing attack by Mr Collins came after a row over a rural plot of land escalated into a campaign of ‘sinister’ threatening emails.

A Dyfed-Powys Police Detective Constable who led the investigation said: ‘The couple were bombarded with emails, suffered verbal abuse, and then the harassment and antisocial behaviour escalated further.

‘In March 2020, the couple reported that some sort of explosive device had been thrown onto their drive during the night.

‘Obviously this caused the couple a great deal of concern, and they immediately contacted police.’

Officers attended, and it was established that three devices had been thrown over the fence, with one exploding, one shattering and the third remaining intact.

The devices were examined for forensic evidence by specialist officers.

A search of the Collins’ house found glass jars similar to those used for the petrol bombs, chemicals and a book containing instructions on how to make a chemical fire bottle.

Computers and mobile phones were examined by the force’s digital unit, showing internet searches relating to creating devices of this kind and the setting up of anonymous email accounts.

Mr Collins pleaded guilty to stalking involving fear of violence or serious alarm or distress on the day he was due to stand trial on March 22, 2021. 

He was given a 425-day prison sentence, and was released after serving half of that time on remand. He was also given an indefinite restraining order preventing him from contacting the victims.

For confidential support call Samaritans on 116123 or visit www.samaritans.org.