Man shot wife and their dog before killing himself in murder-suicide

Stephen Jefferies, 74, wife Christine, 72, and their dog, May, were found dead at the family home in the Trowbridge area of Cardiff (Picture: Wales News Service)

A man shot his wife dead and killed their dog before turning the gun on himself, an inquest heard.

Stephen Jefferies, 74, wife Christine, 72, and their dog, May, were found dead at the family home in the Trowbridge area of Cardiff on October 5 last year.

Their bodies were discovered by their daughter Martine Stecker, who visited the house to check on her parents following a call from a concerned neighbour.

An inquest at Pontypridd Coroner’s Court concluded Mr Jefferies had killed his wife and dog, before taking his own life.

The inquest heard Mr Jefferies had a history of depression and the couple were in £35,000 of debt at the time of the incident.

‘I never had an inkling they had money issues at all,’ Ms Stecker said.

‘I think (my father) had the world on his shoulders but never showed anything.

‘I don’t think my mother was involved in any of this, I think her life was taken away from her.’

The couple were married in 1970 and had two children, Martine and her brother Gethin.

Ms Stecker said they had a good childhood but she was aware her father had struggled with his mental health in recent years.

She said: ‘He lost his sister, something happened in his workplace where he was being bullied.

‘I had no concerns that he really had depression.’

She added: ‘What I did find strange is when he kept going on about the wills, wanting to change it, I thought that was strange at the time.

‘I dismissed it because I just didn’t understand why he wanted to change it all of a sudden after all these years.’

The court heard Mrs Jefferies had suffered with chronic pain and took medication to treat this.

However, she maintained an active social life and met her daughter every Saturday.

‘We’d go to the garden centre, we’d go for coffee or we’d go shopping, just a mother and daughter thing,’ Ms Stecker said.

When Ms Stecker arrived at the house on October 5, she found the curtains drawn and the key in the door.

‘I really didn’t have that much concern at all… I don’t think it really hit me straight away,’ she said.

Ms Stecker discovered the body of the family dog before finding her mother lying in bed.

She said: ‘I don’t even know if I saw my dad… I just knew my mother wasn’t with us any more.

‘I was quite calm, there was no hysteria, no scream.’

Tributes left at the scene following the murder-suicide (Picture: Wales News Service)

The court heard Mr Jefferies owned several guns as he used to go clay pigeon and pheasant shooting.

The couple were found to owe some £35,000 after their deaths, though it is not clear how they acquired the debt.

Detective Chief Inspector Leanne Rees, the senior investigating officer, said there was nothing to suggest Mr Jefferies was violent and there was no note at the scene.

But she told the court there were ‘pertinent’ diary entries in the days before the shooting indicating he was struggling with his mental health.

One entry on October 2 included references to ‘strange head today’, while Mrs Jefferies had noted ‘hubby not quite right this evening’.

Area coroner Patricia Morgan concluded the couple both died from gunshot wounds to the head.

She ruled Mrs Jefferies’ death was an unlawful killing while Mr Jefferies’ cause of death was suicide.

She said: ‘It is likely that Mrs Jefferies was shot by her husband before he went on to shoot the family dog and then himself.

‘Her husband had some historical depression and was likely suffering with a deterioration in his mental health.’

‘They had some financial debts but it is not known to what extent this had caused them stress or worry.’

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