Love-tangle wife served husband three poison meals in bid to make him confess affair

Linda Lees, 45, twice put poison in his takeaway after their 23-year marriage collapsed.

And during a meal at a restaurant she asked a waiter if she could hide her wedding ring in Royal Navy petty officer Paul Lees's food as a romantic surprise - but laced his plate with poison instead.

Jealous: Linda Lees put poison in Navy officer husband Paul's takeaways

She also tried to gas herself in her car, but the attempt failed because the vehicle's catalytic converter reduced the amount of carbon monoxide she inhaled.

Detectives say Mrs Lees suspected the 43-year-old Navy avionics lecturer of being unfaithful, and administered a toxin to try to coax him into admitting his infidelity.

She is said to have made the repeated attempts, despite having a long-term affair with a neighbour herself.

Police, who said Mr Lees had been having an affair, are still waiting to find out what drugs she used in the last attack.

But they believe they may have been those prescribed for her own depression. They are investigating if she may also have used the date rape drug GHB.

At Truro Crown Court, Lees - the manager of a car rental company - admitted administering a noxious substance with intent to injure her husband, who is based in
Portsmouth, on three occasions.

The first was at her home in Cornwall when he visited for a weekend in March.

The second was at a restaurant in Exeter, where they met to try to save their marriage the next month.

On that occasion Mrs Lees went to the toilet and stopped a waiter to ask if she could put a ring into her husband's food as a surprise. But she then slipped poison into it and calmly watched as he ate his meal. Finally, she poisoned him again ten days ago after Mr Lees travelled to their marital home in Helston.

They had been due to spend a last weekend together walking the Cornish coast.

The pair ordered a Chinese takeaway and again Lees put drugs into it. She then took him for a drive.

By the time they returned, he was severely drowsy. He drank from a bottle of water in the car - but his wife had placed another strong dose of drugs in it. Mr Lees managed to escape the car and let himself into the house.

Lees left him there semi-conscious and went to her lover to confess to the poisoning before returning to the garage, where she tried to take her own life.

Mr Skinner said: 'When police arrived they found her in the car with a hosepipe attached to the exhaust.

'It was her lover who called the police.' The couple were taken to hospital and survived without permanent injury.

Detective Constable Martin Skinner said: 'This really was a crime of passion.

'Paul Lees is in the Forces and his long absences led to the relationship deteriorating. Six months ago, he decided the relationship was definitely going to end.

'At the time, she accepted it and agreed with him and hid the fact it was not what she wanted.

'That is why she took the drastic action of attempting to stupefy him - she may have been trying to find out if he had any other relationship going on.'

Mr Skinner added: 'Mrs Lees had been having an affair with a man four doors down from her who was also a friend of Paul's.'

The case was adjourned for a psychological report to be prepared before sentencing in October.

Lees was granted bail on condition that she does not try to contact her husband.

Last night, at his new home in Portsmouth, Mr Lees said: 'I'm still in a state of shock and I'm trying to make sense of it all.'