'Back-from-the dead' canoeist and wife 'have emotional prison reunion'

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Darwin, 57, who had been declared dead for four years after his wrecked canoe was found on a North Sea beach, and Anne, 55, his wife of 35 years met in a court cellblock when they appeared on charges of obtaining over £249,000 in life assurance and pensions by fraud.

In their first meeting for over a month they were separated by glass at Hartlepool, Teesside, a few miles from where he was presumed drowned when his wrecked canoe was found in March 2002.

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John Darwin and Anne Darwin lived together in Panama

Former teacher and prison officer Darwin's solicitor John Nixon said: "He says it was a very emotional moment to be briefly reunited with Anne.

"He loves her very much, and he saw her for the first time through glass as they were waiting to go into court.

"She mouthed a few words to him but he could not hear her because he is deaf. They spoke briefly upstairs.

"He told me later that he knew it was going to be emotional seeing her after all that time. He did not tell me what she said to him.

"He expects to go to jail, but I do not want to go into that further."

Police say that the couple formerly from Seaton Carew, Hartlepool, who have two sons Anthony,29, and Mark, 32, had been living together in Panama.

John Darwin, who is also charged with obtaining a passport by deception, gave himself up at West End Central police station on December 1, and his wife flew back voluntarily a fortnight later.

They did not enter pleas to the charges when they appeared before Hartlepool Magistrates on Wednesday, and they were remanded in custody again to appear by videolink on Friday January 18.