A MAN has been handed a 22-year-old jail term after being convicted of murdering his boyfriend.

Aaron Ray, 21, stabbed Jason Brockbanks at Jason’s student accommodation on Howard Street, in Newcastle, in the early hours of September 24 last year following an argument.

Ray then cruelly left Jason, a 24-year-old Northumbria University student who was originally from Whitehaven in Cumbria, with fatal wounds and returned to his Sunderland home without informing the emergency services that Jason was injured.

Jason’s body was found three days later after concerns for his welfare were raised.

After immediately launching a murder investigation, officers from Northumbria Police arrested Ray at his home in Mayfield Road, South Hylton. He was then charged with murder, which he denied.

Following a seven-day trial at Newcastle Crown Court, Ray was found guilty on Tuesday (March 21) after the jury rejected his claims that he had been physically attacked by Jason and was acting in self-defence.

Today, at the same court, he was sentenced to 22 years behind bars.

The senior investigating officer in the case, Detective Inspector Tomasz Fowler, of Northumbria Police, said: “This is a truly tragic case in which a popular young man lost his life and our thoughts very much remain with Jason’s heartbroken family, friends and loved ones.

“Jason was enjoying his life as a student in Newcastle and that was cruelly cut short by the actions of Aaron Ray, who was cold and calculating in fatally wounding Jason and then leaving the scene of the crime.

“There has been no evidence at all throughout this investigation to support Ray’s claim that Jason was violent or aggressive in any way and it was clear that his fellow students saw him as a friendly and sociable person.

“Thanks to the hard work of our officers, we were able to quickly identify Ray as the person responsible, apprehend him and get him before the courts. I’m pleased that he has now been given the conviction and sentence he deserves.”

He added: “I’d also like to thank Jason’s loved ones for their patience, co-operation and the dignity they have shown throughout the investigation and subsequent court proceedings.

“We hope that the outcome of the trial will help provide a degree of closure for them in seeing the person responsible for this heinous crime brought to justice.

“No-one wins when violence occurs and I hope what has taken place sends a clear message to anyone who believes that such actions are acceptable – the consequences are devastating and can rip not only yours but the lives of others apart.”

READ MORE: Sunderland man convicted of murdering Whitehaven student