An elderly Briton accused of murdering his terminally ill wife vowed to stay by her side in Cyprus if he is freed.
David Hunter, 75, has spent most of the past year in prison for the act he claims was out of love for his childhood sweetheart who had incurable blood cancer.
The retired Northumberland man says he smothered his wife of 52-years, Janice, at their home in Paphos in December 2021 at her request.
Janice is buried in the village of Tremithousa and David wants to remain near her.
Mr Hunter was due to give evidence on Tuesday at Paphos Assize Court but the case was adjourned until Wednesday because a doctor also due to testify failed to turn up.
Judge Droushiotis ordered the absent doctor, who saw David after the incident on December 18 2021, to appear on Wednesday. After which, Mr Hunter is due to testify for the first time.
Mr Hunter told reporters at Paphos Assize Court during a break in proceedings from his trial: “Me and my wife came here to live. My wife died here and I want to stay here.”
Paramedic Kyriakos Kyriakou told the court that when he arrived at Mr Hunter's home the former miner was in an “intense” state.
He said he was “confused but was communicating”, and that he was “answering our questions clearly."
Mr Hunter also told reporters how on the one-year anniversary of her death, he was not allowed to visit the prison church to pay his respects.
He told the Mirror other prisoners were “incredibly respectful” and that when he needs time to process and grieve he pulls a curtain across his bed and spends moments in silence.
In December, lawyers representing the pensioner had been led to believe that a plea bargain was agreed and that he would plead guilty to manslaughter on agreed facts, paving the way for a possible release on compassionate grounds.
But last month the court decided to press ahead with his case as a murder trial, meaning he could face life in prison if convicted.
At the trial's opening in September at the city's district court, David wept as he detailed how his life had changed since losing his "best friend".
He said: "She wasn't just my wife she was my best friend. It’s like a black hole. I used to think I could never imagine life without Janice but it’s just so much harder."
Mr Hunter's defence team is also arguing that proper procedures were not followed when the 75-year-old was arrested.
Last week, a trial within trial began in relation to whether Mr Hunter was given his right to a lawyer, independent translation and cautioned before statements were taken from him.
A police officer who attended the scene described the moment a man from Northumberland showed him how he killed his terminally ill wife in Cyprus.
Kypros Kangelis told the court: "I asked David what happened. He told me he took her life and the reason was to stop her suffering and he showed with his hands that he closed her mouth and nose."
ITV News reports that Mr Hunter's defence lawyer Nicoletta Charalambidou asked a second officer, Vaso Charalambous, how she confirmed Mr Hunter had realised what his rights were.
Ms Charalambous said: "He didn't clearly say he did not want a lawyer. He wanted to stay silent. It's his right, he didn't want to say anything".
Ms Charalambidou then said: "You didn't give him the right to a translator."
She replied: "Mr Hunter understood everything I was telling him."
The case was adjourned until 17 January 2023 and prosecutors say they expect the trial to last until Easter.
A CrowdJustice page set up to raise money for the legal fees has now raised £28,000.
