Anouk Curry: "Michael Coulton led a bizarre double life"

A jury at Reading Crown Court took just under 10 hours to find Michael Coulton guilty of killing mother-of-two Patricia Coulton.

Her body was found in the grounds of the nursing home where she worked as a care assistant.

Coulton: Saw prostitutes while his wife was at work

Coulton, 53, shook his head as the jury returned its unanimous verdict. He was sentenced to life imprisonment.

The judge, Mr Justice Wright, told him: "The jury have found you guilty of what on the evidence the court has heard was quite plainly a long planned, callous and ultimately cold-hearted killing of your wife.

"I'm quite satisfied on the evidence I have heard you have been contemplating her murder and devising plans to achieve that murder for many months past.

"In a vain attempt to conceal your guilt you have lied, lied and lied again, to your family, your friends, to your superiors and to anybody and everybody who has had anything to do with this case.

"This was an appalling crime and if it is possible to do so it is made even more chilling by the fact that you were a policeman, a man who had sworn to protect the populace of this country and to uphold the law."

'A very evil man'

After the verdict Detective Inspector Steve Cronin said: "He is a very evil man. He thought he was too clever to be caught."

He expressed his sympathy for the Coultons' children - Melissa, 23, and Neil, 21.

"I think Melissa throughout has thought her father was totally innocent of doing such a thing. Neil did not want to believe it as no child would but he felt something was wrong," he said.

Car rigged up to stop by remote

Mrs Coulton's body was found slumped in her car in the orchard of Lynwood nursing home in Sunningdale in Berkshire on 11 January, 1997, by a woman out walking her dog.

She had been stabbed 15 times and bludgeoned to death.

Prosecuting, Richard Latham, QC, had told the jury that DIY fanatic Coulton had rigged up a remote control cut-out device on his wife's car that he triggered to bring the Renault 19 to a stop.

As she sat in the broken-down car just yards from the nursing home, Coulton stabbed her and beat her to death.

He then played the "grieving husband" as he tried to stay one step ahead of the police investigation, the court was told.

The couple mixed with royalty

Coulton always denied murdering Patricia, whom he had remarried in 1995 after they divorced in 1983.

But the court learned he stood to gain more than £100,000 from his wife's death in pension and insurance money.

He would also have got the family home in Upton, Goldsworth Park, Woking, Surrey.

Claims were 'nonsense'

In his evidence Coulton had dismissed the claims as "nonsense" and "absolute rubbish".

The court was told he had also become obsessed with neighbour Diana Bridges for whom he did odd jobs and had told her: "I would marry you tomorrow".

She described how Coulton gave her and her daughter Claire expensive gifts and started to stalk her when she ended the friendship and had followed her in his car.