Yahoo News Car salesman who claimed wife died in sex game gone wrong admits he killed her in row over money
A British car salesman who claimed his wife choked to death during a sex game that went wrong has admitted killing her at his Spanish court trial.
Warren Lyttle, 52, made his confession after taking the witness stand following a plea bargain deal with prosecutors who were demanding a murder conviction and 20-year jail sentence.
Jurors at a criminal court in the Majorcan capital Palma were told that as part of the deal - involving him owning up to killing his wife - the British expat was now facing a lesser charge of homicide and 12-year prison sentence.
Lyttle was arrested in January last year after police and paramedics he called to his home in Costa de la Calma found Lisa Jane, 49, dead.
We argued about money and because we had been drinking. I didn’t realise she was dead at first
Warren Lyttle
A post-mortem examination showed the mother of one, who lived in Kilburn, north London, but travelled regularly to Majorca to spend time with her husband, had died from asphyxia due to strangulation.
Lisa Jane had only flown to Majorca two days before she was killed in the early hours of January 23 2016 for a week’s holiday.
Her husband told a judge in a remand hearing 24 hours later that she choked to death during a sado-masochistic role-play she proposed.
State prosecutors made it clear they did not believe his claims. At a court hearing on Monday, Lyttle was asked by prosecutor Gabriel Rullan during cross examination why he had killed his wife.
“We argued about money and because we had been drinking," he said. “I didn’t realise she was dead at first. Afterwards I calmed down and realised she was dead.”
He recalled calling the emergency services “two or three times” and admitted telling local police when they arrived: “I told them she wants money, but I don’t have money.” No mention was made about the sex game claims.
Responding to questions from his own lawyer, Gaspar Oliver, he added: “There hasn’t been a single day since January 23 2016 when I haven’t regretted what I did. I lost my wife, who was my best friend, and I lost a lot of people who were friends.”
The couple's grown-up daughter Demmi Nicole, who attended court, also gave evidence and claimed her mother had been a victim of domestic violence. She made no eye contact with her father.
The 21-year-old, who hired her own lawyer to mount a parallel prosecution to the state one, is demanding 180,000 Euros (£159,390) compensation from her father and a restraining order.
Mr Rullan told the hearing: “There is agreement between lawyers on all sides in this case as to what the sentence and punishment should be. The defendant has admitted his guilt.”
The trial is expected to continue on Tuesday with evidence from police and forensic experts, but may be shortened because of the plea deal and Lyttle’s trial admission which makes his 12-year prison sentence on a homicide conviction almost inevitable.
The charge of homicide in Spain is mid way between manslaughter and the more serious charge of murder and carries a ten to 15-year prison sentence.
Judge Carmen Gonzalez is due to deliver her sentence in writing once the trial has finished, as is normal in Spain.
