Former Gulf News editor was ‘temporarily insane’ when he killed wife, court hears
Former newspaper editor Francis Matthew was suffering from temporary insanity brought on by stress when he killed his wife at their Dubai home, a forensic expert said.
Dubai Court of Appeal heard that Matthew, 62, was not aware of his actions when he hit his wife, Jane, 62, on the head with a hammer, after the couple argued about finances.
“Due to severe pressure and emotional stress he suffered from temporary insanity, which means that his logic and mental abilities were shut down and he lost all ability to distinguish right from wrong,” Dr Muna Al Juhary said.
Dr Al Juhary said forensic reports also revealed that the defendant hit his wife with the hammer once, rather than twice as was initially reported.
The blow appeared to show two injuries because both ends of the hammer made contact with Mrs Matthew’s head.
“The cheek [flat side] of the hammer was used to hit the victim, which explains why she sustained one severe injury and another moderate one,” Dr Al Juhary said, before demonstrating the action to the court using the judge’s gavel.
“The severe one was caused by the hammer’s bell, which is heavy, and the other caused by the claw.”
Dubai Police were called to Matthew’s home in Jumeirah at 5.45pm on July 4 last year. They found his wife dead in bed with a severe head wound. The couple had been married for more than 30 years.
Matthew claimed his wife had been assaulted by robbers who broke into their three-bedroom home while he was at work between 8am and 5pm.
He later admitted to killing Mrs Matthew after an argument about him wanting to move to a smaller home because they were in debt.
Matthew said he was provoked by her calling him a “loser”, saying it was his responsibility to provide money and physically pushing him.
Matthew said he took a hammer from the kitchen, followed her into the bedroom and hit her on the head while she was lying in bed.
The next morning, he tried to make the house look like it had been robbed before leaving for work, throwing the hammer, which he put in a plastic bag, in a nearby rubbish bin.
A forensic report said that bruises around Mrs Matthew’s mouth and upper lip indicated that she was forcefully silenced while on the bed.
The former editor of Gulf News was jailed for 10 years on March 25 after Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance changed the charge of murder to “physical assault leading to death”, but he appealed against the sentence.
The next hearing is on September 23 when the court will hear from more witnesses.