A GP to the royal family may have been beaten and strangled to death by her husband in their bedroom while hosting a children's sleepover, a court heard today.
Hannah Cain, 45, known professionally as Dr Hannah Terry, was found dead at her address near the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk in the early hours of October 4. Her husband Mark Cain, 45, was arrested after the incident in the village of Dersingham and later charged with her murder.
Court appearance
Bald-headed Cain, who had a grey beard, appeared before Norwich Magistrates' Court on Wednesday wearing a black sweater. He spoke only to state his name, address and date of birth, and was not asked to enter a plea.
Prosecutor Jackie Hanlon told the court that the ambulance service contacted the police at 2.25am on October 4. She said Dr Cain was 'found in an upstairs bedroom not breathing, not conscious'.
'She was attended to by paramedics,' Ms Hanlon said. She said that a post-mortem examination 'noted blunt force injury to the right side of her head had been inflicted, also an injury that could be suggestive of compression of the neck'.
Children present at the scene
'There were children present in the property at the time,' she said.
District judge Matthew Bone told Cain: 'I send your case to the King's Lynn Crown Court where you will appear tomorrow (Thursday) in the morning, and I remand you in custody.'
The Fern Hill address is just over a mile from Sandringham House, one of the royal residences of the King and Queen.
GP's career and royal connection
Dr Cain, who was known professionally as Dr Hannah Terry, was listed as a member of the practice team at Grimston Medical Centre. She served in a pool of doctors who were regularly on call for members of the royal family nearby, as first reported by The Sun.
King Charles and Queen Camilla had been informed of her death, sources told the newspaper.
According to the website of a business she ran called Norfolk Sky Aesthetics, Dr Cain had been a qualified doctor for more than 15 years and a GP for eight. Dr Cain described herself as a 'caring and professional doctor' who continued her work as a GP alongside her cosmetics business.
