British man who killed terminally ill wife in Cyprus freed after two years in custody

A British man has been released from a Cyprus prison after being sentenced to two years for the manslaughter of his seriously ill wife.

Retired miner, David Hunter, 76, admitted suffocating Janice, his wife of 52 years, at their home on the island, after she “begged him” to end her life as she suffered from blood cancer.

On Monday, judges at Paphos District Court imposed a two-year jail sentence on Hunter, who, having already spent 19 months in custody, has already served the majority of his sentence.

Hunter was released from custody on Monday morning after Cypriot prison authorities officially calculated his release date, his legal team said.

“Thank you all so much,” Mr Hunter told awaiting reporters after the sentence was handed down.

Asked how he was feeling upon his release, Hunter said: “I can’t describe it. I’m sorry. I wish I could, I wish I could find words to describe it but I can’t.

“When you’re under pressure for two years, not knowing which way it’s going to go…”

He added: “I’d like to say thank you to all the people who’ve donated to me, and especially my mates and my workmates. I don’t know where I would be without them.”

Hunter’s daughter Lesley Cawthorne said she was “elated and relieved” at the release of her “darling dad”.

‌“The past 19 months have been a living nightmare for our family but today is the start of us being able to rebuild our lives.”

‌She said the sentence will allow her family to “finally grieve” for her dead mother.

After speaking to Hunter over the phone, Ms Cawthorne added: “Speaking to my daddy was the most amazing thing. I feel like my heart has been put back together.”

Judges previously found him not guilty of the more serious charge of premeditated murder.

Hunter’s legal team had argued he should be given a suspended sentence, in a case which is a legal first in the country.

In mitigation last week, his defence lawyer, Ritsa Pekri, said his motive was to “liberate his wife from all that she was going through due to her health conditions”.

The court heard it was Mrs Hunter’s “wish” to die and that her husband “had only feelings of love for her”.

Hunter, from Ashington, Northumberland, told his trial, which lasted for more than a year, that his wife “cried and begged” him to end her life.

He broke down in tears as he said he would “never in a million years” have taken Mrs Hunter’s life unless she had asked him to.

He showed the court how he held his hands over his wife’s mouth and nose and said he eventually decided to grant her wish after she became “hysterical”.

The court heard he then tried to kill himself by taking an overdose, but medics arrived in time to save him.

Judge Michalis Droussiotis said the case was not typical as Hunter ended his wife’s life “on the basis of feelings of love, with the aim of relieving the person of their suffering that came due to their illness.”

He reiterated that “taking away human life, even with the intention of relieving suffering, is a crime”.

He refused the defence team’s application to suspend Hunter’s prison sentence and said an immediate jail term was “unavoidable”.