A former South Holland District Council employee and his wife died in an apparent suicide pact, probably prompted by her poorly condition.
The bodies of Sean and Mary Lawson, who both died from asphyxiation, were found at their home in Rugby, Warwickshire.
An inquest heard that an email which Mr Lawson (50) had sent to police with a time delay on it included “apologies for this”. It was received after the couple had died.
The hearing in Leamington was also told by a police officer that Mrs Lawson (63) had been ill for 18 months with deep vein thrombosis, which had resulted in a stroke.
Det Insp Paul Thompson, of Warwickshire Police, said: “The deceased’s husband sent an email to police on May 27 at 6.58pm with a time delay.
“It said ‘apologies for this’ and by the time it had arrived to police the deceased and her husband had passed over. Units were sent to the property at 1.35pm on May 28.”
Referring to the method of suffocation, he said: “It looked as if they had supported and assisted one another.”
Mr Lawson, who was head of environment and public realm at Rugby Borough Council, had worked as an environmental health officer at South Holland District Council. His cousins include the district council’s food, health and safety manager Craig Fowler and former Spalding United manager Alan Day.
It’s understood that Mr Lawson’s parents, Alec and Fay, live in Spalding and are former proprietors of Pennygate Stores, and his sister Sharon Morton also lives in the town.
Mrs Lawson was a former canon of Leicester Cathedral and ex-headmistress of the city’s first Hindu school.
A family friend told the Rugby Observer that Mrs Lawson’s condition had deteriorated in the weeks before her death, adding: “I don’t think they could bear to be without each other but Mary’s illness put a strain on them. She was really suffering.”
The inquest was adjourned until September.
The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
