'I didn't want to live without her': David Hunter recalls stint in Cypriot psychiatric hospital after death of terminally-ill wife
5 August 2023, 19:13 | Updated: 5 August 2023, 23:02
David Hunter has revealed his traumatic experience inside a psychiatric hospital following the death of his late wife, as the expat was cleared of her murder by Cypriot authorities.
Mr Hunter, 76, from Northumberland, was released from prison in Cyprus on Monday after spending 19 months in custody for the mercy killing of his late wife Janice.
The retired miner had been sentenced to two years in prison for her manslaughter after she "pleaded" with him to end her life following a blood cancer diagnosis.
"I didn't want to live without her. At the time I couldn't have cared less what happened to me. If I'd been shot or hanged I'd have been grateful," Mr Hunter told the Daily Mail, explaining a stint spent in a psychiatric facility in Cyprus.
"I've seen some awful things in my life, but the memory of her face as she died. She went grey. Her jaw was twisted. I tried to straighten it. She looked nothing like my wife."
"She just closed her eyes and said, 'Give us a kiss.' I kissed her on the cheek," recalled Mr Hunter to the Daily Mail of his wife's final moments," he added.
Assisted suicide where those with terminal illnesses are concerned remains illegal in both Cyprus and the UK.
Hunter was pictured on Tuesday visiting his wife's grave for the first time, laying flowers at a cemetery minutes from the couple's home in Tremithousa - a small village near the coastal resort town of Paphos.
Mr Hunter said: "I still speak to Janice. I still tell her I love her and miss her every day. I say, 'I don't know whether I love you more or miss you more'."
The couple had been married for 52 years before Mr Hunter ended his wife's life in December 2021 after her pain and suffering is said to have become too great.
He later alludes to the fact he would have visited Switzerland's Dignitas clinic, where doctors assist with suicide, had he had the money and the means.
Explaining his suicidal thoughts following her death, Mr Hunter was then arrested, shackledand placed under 24-hour police guard in hospital.
After attempting to end his own life, he had his stomach pumped, before being sectioned and placed in a padded cell at a psychiatric hospital alongside five other mentally-ill inmates.
The British ex-pat says his late wife's face will remain in his mind forever, noting he still sees it in his nightmares following her death.
Going on to recall his last moments in prison before being released, Mr Hunter explains the reactions of Cypriot authorities.
"The custody policeman hugged me when I got out and said, 'Congratulations, David. You got the result you deserved. In the nicest possible way I hope I never see you again'," he recalled.
Following his release, Mr Hunter is said to have marked his first day of freedom with a pint of shandy and a beef burger.
Mr Hunter could not find the grave at first and was guided to it by his lawyer Michael Polak of Justice Abroad, who represented him during his trial.
After his release, he said: "I'd like to say thank you to all the people who've donated to me, and especially my mates and my workmates. I don't know where I would be without them.
