Briton’s murder trial adjourned after defence lawyers test positive for Covid

The trial of the 74-year-old Briton accused of the murder of his wife in Tremithousa last December was adjourned on Thursday, after both the defendant’s attorneys could not attend the proceedings having contracted Covid-19.

The judge granted the request, adjourning the trial to January 9 – at which date the court will hold a trial within a trial to decide whether the charge of murder as filed will stand, or amended to manslaughter as sought by the defence.

In a twist last week, the charges faced by 74-year-old David Hunter – accused of murdering his terminally ill wife in Tremithousa last December – remained unchanged despite hopes it might be mitigated to manslaughter.

After the Paphos court had adjourned last week, it appeared that the two sides had agreed the facts of the case, which would have allowed Hunter to change his plea from non-admission to murder, on condition that he be charged with manslaughter.

However, in a last-minute decision, the attorney-general decided to reject the change.

According to the case history, in December 2021 Hunter caused the death of his wife Janice, terminally ill with cancer, because he could not bear to watch her suffer.

In his statement to the police and to his brother after the crime, Hunter had claimed that what he did was also his wife’s will, but this was not accepted by the prosecution.

Prosecution attorney Andreas Hadjikyrou cast doubt on whether the killing had been agreed upon, saying that while Hunter may have killed his wife out of pity, that does not mean she had consented to it.

The prosecution says there was no physical or verbal proof of the agreement. It has also argued that accepting this could set a precedent for future crimes on trial.