Hockey coach who claimed wife stabbed herself guilty of murder

A FORMER Wales under-18s hockey coach who claimed his interior designer wife had stabbed herself to death has been convicted of her murder.

- STEPHANIE WAREHAM

Mohamed Samak, 43, denied murdering Joanne Samak, 49, claiming he woke up at around 3am on July 1 last year to see her stabbing herself at their home in Chestnut Spinney, Droitwich Spa.

Prosecutors said Samak, a former Egyptian international hockey player and coach who worked with the Wales under-18s team, killed his wife because he was suffering financial problems and had become interested in another woman.

Samak told the trial his wife took her own life and was struggling with alcohol and mental health problems, although friends and family said they had no concerns about her drinking or her mental state and that she had things to look forward to.

Joanne, who was the main breadwinner while Samak struggled to find a permanent job, suffered six stab wounds to the chest and abdomen, ranging between 2.5cm and 10cm deep.

Medical experts told the jury considerable force was needed to penetrate her breastbone, making it highly unlikely she could have inflicted the injury on herself.