British expat guilty of manslaughter after killing his terminally ill wife
David Hunter’s lawyers claimed it was an assisted suicide after she “begged” him to end her life
A British expat has been cleared of murdering his terminally ill wife at their retirement home in Cyprus. Janice Hunter, 74, who suffered from blood cancer, died of asphyxiation in December 2021 near the coastal resort town of Paphos.
Her husband, former miner David Hunter, had denied murder and told a court that his wife had “begged him” to end her life. Following a trial, he has been found guilty of manslaughter and may receive a suspended sentence.
His lawyers claimed her death was an assisted suicide and that it was not a case of premeditated murder.
Giving evidence in May, Mr Hunter, from Ashington in Northumberland, told the District Court in Paphos he would “never in a million years” have killed his wife of more than 50 years unless she had asked him to, adding: "She wasn’t just my wife, she was my best friend."
He had spoken of a “perfect” 52-year marriage to his wife and broke down in tears as he described the moment he killed her.
He demonstrated to the court how he suffocated her with his hands after he eventually decided to grant her wish when she became “hysterical”.
“For five or six weeks before she died she was asking me to help her. She was asking me more every day,” he said.
“In the last week she was crying and begging me. Every day she asked me a bit more intensely to do it.”
The court heard from Mrs Hunter’s doctor who said she had a rare blood cancer, with Mr Hunter saying that she had become progressively more ill and had no quality of life.
Asked by defence lawyer Ritsa Pekri how the last days were, Mr Hunter said: “She was crying, crying, crying, begging, begging, begging. She wasn’t taking any care of herself. For the last two or three weeks she could not move her arms and had trouble with her legs, she couldn’t balance.
“She was only eating soup, she couldn’t hold anything down. She lost a lot of weight. She lost so much weight that there was no flesh to put her injections in.”
Before he finished giving evidence, he asked to address the judge, who he told: “My wife was suffering and she actually said: ‘I don’t want to live any more,’ and I still said no.
“Then she started to become hysterical. I was hoping she would change her mind. I loved her so much. I did not plan it, I swear to God.”
The pensioner’s defence team had also argued that a confession made during his arrest should not have been admissible and claimed he was suffering from dissociation at the time.
Prosecutors had argued that there was no evidence Mrs Hunter had asked for him to kill her and that her death would not have been painless or peaceful but a “horrible” experience.
After giving evidence Mr Hunter told reporters his time in a Cypriot prison was “nothing” compared to the last six months of Janice’s life.
Mr Hunter told the court he tried to kill himself after his wife’s death.
The couple’s daughter, Lesley Cawthrone, said that her father was “anxious, tired and lonely” and that the past “19 months has taken a huge toll on him”.
She added: “I think the hope has been crushed out of him.
“He would probably tell other people he’s keeping his chin up but I see how much he’s struggling.”
A panel of three judges handed down the verdict following a lengthy trial. Mr Hunter will return for sentencing on 27 July.