A man convicted of murdering his wife by strangling her with a washing line has passed away while in prison. Norman Heaton, who was serving a life sentence for the killing of Jacqueline Heaton in South Shields back in May 2001, used a washing line to suffocate his wife. He claimed the act was part of a sexual game gone wrong and then concealed her body beneath stairs.
Despite his explanation, a jury at Newcastle Crown Court determined that Heaton had intended to kill his wife by tightening the cord around her neck. The court learned that the Heatons’ marriage was troubled, leading up to Jacqueline’s death as they were contemplating separation.
Heaton, driven by the fear of his wife leaving him, resorted to fatally strangling her. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 12 years. Heaton, aged 66, succumbed to bronchopneumonia while incarcerated at HMP Full Sutton in November of the previous year.