Revealed: First picture of wife 'murdered by cop husband' who also killed his mother-in-law

Garry Weddell feared relatives were hell-bent on putting him behind bars for murdering his wife - and planning to take away his children.

The ex-soldier snapped and used an illegal gun to blast Danish-born widow Traute Maxfield, his mother-in-law, at her £1million home in Gustard Wood, Herts.

He then drove to a shooting range and killed himself.

The 47-year-old was due to stand trial over the death of his wife Sandra and was convinced that her family wanted him put away so they could take the couple's three children to New Zealand, where Sandra's twin Liza Devlin, 44, lives.

Mrs Devlin landed at Heathrow this morning for an emotional reunion with her sister's three young children.

A friend, who did not wish to be named, said Weddell, an inspector based in Barnet, North London, may have feared his children were about to emigrate to New Zealand to live with a relative.

"Garry thought he might never see his children again. Maybe that's why he flipped out," said the friend.

His children - aged 13, 11 and eight - had recently returned to the UK after spending five weeks in New Zealand with Mrs Maxfield.

And yesterday it was revealed how Weddell's 70-year-old mother in law feared for her life after he was released on bail over the murder of her daughter.

Mrs Maxfield told friends of her terror when she learnt that Weddell was granted freedom as he awaited trial accused of killing his wife Sandra.

Her worst fears were realised on Saturday when the Metropolitan Police officer blasted her to death because she was due to testify against him and then killed himself at a shooting club.

Police tried to contact Mrs Maxfield after discovering Weddell's body because she was listed as his next of kin. They found her body on Saturday afternoon.

As calls for a high-level inquiry into the case intensified, Mrs Maxfield's close friend Suzanne Locks, 72, said: "Traute was terribly worried when he got let out on bail. She certainly didn't trust him. She thought he was capable of anything."

She said Mrs Maxfield was 'absolutely convinced' Weddell was capable of killing her 44-year-old daughter and faking her suicide.

Mrs Weddell was found dead in the garage of their family home in Lancot Avenue, Dunstable, Bedfordshire, last January.

A cable tie was found around her neck and her death was initially treated as a suspected suicide.

But a post-mortem examination revealed the nurse and exam invigilator's injuries were not self-inflicted. A suicide note had been typed on the family computer, but a forensic linguistic examination suggested she was not the author.

Five months later Weddell was charged with his wife's murder and initially remanded in custody. In September, however, he was granted bail with a surety of £200,000, on condition that he hand in his gun licence and stay away from his mother-in-law.

Mrs Locks, a neighbour who became close friends with devout church-goer Mrs Maxfield a year ago, said she often spoke of her concerns about Weddell's trial.

"She was very worried about the whole situation," said Mrs Locks.

"She feared that her son-in-law would be let off when the case came up in May," said Mrs Locks.

Yesterday, friends of Mrs Weddell described her as an active member of her community, who was a school governor and helped to organise charity events at her local church.

Fellow governor Rosie Zaldua-Taylor said she was 'a beautiful person' who 'gave so much'.

Responding to claims that Mrs Weddell may have been murdered because she was having an extramarital affair, Mrs Zaldua-Taylor said: "Sandra was a devout Christian. She wouldn't have done that. She wasn't that kind of person."

Last night, a parent at the school attended by Weddell's youngest child revealed that he was seen with a woman - thought to be a new girlfriend - shortly after his wife's death.

She said: "It upset a lot of people that this woman started turning up with him at the school. Many felt that he had been carrying on an affair from before Sandra's death."