Man found wife dead at her home

The inquest heard that Susan Scott was living in Cirencester

A man hoping for a reconciliation with his wife after being separated from her for six years arrived at her home to find her dead, an inquest has heard.

Susan Scott, 60, sent a text message to husband John in Aberystwyth, saying she loved him and wanted to see him.

He drove 130 miles to her home in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, that night only to find her dead in bed.

The coroner heard Mrs Scott had a heart condition and recorded a natural causes verdict.

Gloucestershire coroner Alan Crickmore heard from a pathologist, who found she had died when her heart stopped following an acute arrhythmia - a disturbance of the normal electrical rhythm of the heart.

Mr Scott told the inquest in Gloucester last Friday that he and his wife had been talking about moving back together after six years apart.

'Enjoyable time'

"She had been well, strong and fit since she started working part-time, and she enjoyed rambling and working on her allotment," he said.

"The previous weekend, we had been together at my home in Aberystwyth and had a very enjoyable time.

"The night before I came to Cirencester we spent a longer time than usual on the phone, talking about how we could change things so that we could live together in the same house again.

"The next day I received a text from her saying she loved me and wanted me to come and see her. I drove down and arrived in Cirencester at about 9.45pm."

Getting no answer at the door, Mr Scott let himself into her house using a key borrowed from a neighbour and waited for her to return home from a meeting she had been due to attend that night, the inquest heard.

When she did not arrive home Mr Scott went upstairs and found Mrs Scott dead in bed, the inquest was told.