A ROYAL doctor’s husband hit her in the head with an axe and strangled her to death before claiming there had been a break-in, it has been alleged as he appeared in court.
Mark Cain, 45, had “superficial cuts” himself and told officers he confronted an intruder while five children were in the house for a sleepover, it was claimed.
Wife Hannah, 45, known to patients as Dr Terry, was found by officers “unconscious and unresponsive” at her £830,000 house in Dersingham, Norfolk, in the early hours of Sunday.
Their property is on the edge of the King’s Sandringham Estate, and Dr Terry had treated members of the Royal Family when they stayed there.
Steve Bell, prosecuting, told King’s Lynn crown court: “The police attended the house in the early hours to a report made by Mr Cain of a suspected burglary.
“Mr Cain was seen to have superficial cuts.
“He informed police that he’d been in a confrontation with an intruder downstairs while his wife was upstairs asleep.
“Their own children and two children of another family were also upstairs, staying over for a sleep-over.
“Hannah was found upstairs by police on the floor of a bedroom, unconscious and unresponsive.”
A post-mortem revealed she suffered blunt force injuries to her head and also an injury to her neck.
Cain was emotionless as he appeared at King’s Lynn Crown Court this morning via video-link from HMP Norwich.
Wearing a grey prison-issued jumper, he spoke only to confirm his name.
He did not enter a plea and was remanded into custody.
Cain will next appear at Norwich Crown Court on December 3.
A provisional trial date was set for June 7 next year.
Dr Terry – whose married name was Cain – had been a GP for eight years and worked at Grimston Medical Centre.
A spokesperson for the surgery, which was closed on Monday, hailed her as an “exceptional doctor”.
They said: “We have lost an outstanding doctor, a cherished colleague and a friend, and her absence will be felt deeply across our health community.
“The profound sense of shock and sadness across our practices and the wider NHS community speaks to the impact Hannah had on so many people.
“She gave freely of her time and knowledge and, in the words of colleagues who knew her well, was simply a joy to know and work with.”
The 45-year-old is understood to have worked with members of the Royal Family, including Queen Camilla.
She also ran a cosmetics business called Norfolk Sky Aesthetics.
In a statement issued through police yesterday, her family said they were “devastated by the loss of our beautiful Hannah”.
They added: “She was kind, generous and loving; a beloved mother, daughter, sister, auntie, daughter-in-law and friend.
“We are incredibly proud of the woman she was and of the great care she took of all her patients who knew her as Dr Terry.”
