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An 82-year-old man has been spared jail after admitting killing his wife in what he believed was an "act of mercy".

Martin Rudin smothered his wife Gabriella, 75, at their home in Histon, Cambridgeshire, last New Year's Eve.

Authorities were alerted after a carer arrived and was told by Rudin: "She has died. She has gone in the night."

At the Old Bailey on Thursday Judge Mark Bishop sentenced Rudin to two years' imprisonment, suspended for two years.

In early January, Rudin took an overdose before reporting himself to police, saying: "I've come here to tell you that I killed my wife."

He said he had smothered Mrs Rudin with cling film from the kitchen and explained she had Parkinson's disease, suffered a fall in early December and had been "begging" him to kill her.

The retired civil engineer had denied her murder but admitted manslaughter by diminished responsibility, which was accepted by the Crown Prosecution Service.

Judge Bishop said it was a "tragic case" involving a couple who had led a "loving and content, interesting life together".

The judge noted there were signs the defendant was not coping with the "strain of being the principal carer".

He said: "I accept at the time he did believe he was doing what he believed to be an act of mercy."

Mrs Rudin had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2018 and was admitted to Addenbrooke's Hospital last December following a fall.

On 19 December, a medical review found a lack of engagement in her rehabilitation, with Mrs Rudin saying: "I just want to be dead. I've given up. Nothing can help me now."

She was prescribed antidepressants before being discharged from hospital on Christmas Eve.

Det Insp Dale Mepstead, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit, said: "Mrs Rudin's death has had a devastating effect on those who knew and loved her.

"This has been a thorough and extensive investigation under terribly sad circumstances, and my thoughts and sympathies are with the family."

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