French banker's lover convicted

Edouard Stern's widow attended Thursday's hearing

A Swiss court has convicted the lover of influential French banker Edouard Stern of murdering him after a sado-masochistic sex game.

In its ruling, the court rejected the defence team's argument that the woman, Cecile Brossard, had committed a crime of passion.

Ms Brossard, 40, had confessed to shooting Mr Stern in his luxury flat in Geneva in 2005.

He was found in a skin-coloured latex suit pierced with four bullet wounds.

Court papers showed her confessing to killing Mr Stern in a row over $1m, which Brossard had demanded as "proof of his love for her".

He had transferred the money but then had it blocked.

Brossard admitted to cleaning up the scene of the crime - reportedly littered with sex toys among expensive antiques - before throwing the gun into Lake Geneva.

On Wednesday, she made an emotional apology to Mr Stern's family before the jury retired to deliberate.

"I am a woman who is desperately in love with a man and I remain so," she said.

But the jury found that Brossard had "acted with a certain determination" and that her "state of despair was not excusable".

Brossard faces a prison term of up to 20 years. Sentencing is expected on Thursday.