Lisa Smith leaving husband before Valentine’s Day shooting

A woman shot dead by her husband outside a pub on Valentine’s Day was trying to end the relationship, an inquest has heard.

Edward Smith shot his wife, Lisa Smith, in the car park of the Three Horseshoes pub in Knockholt, Kent, on 14 February.

His body was found the following month in the River Thames after he was believed to have entered the water near the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge in Dartford.

An inquest into their deaths heard that Mr Smith shot Ms Smith three times before fleeing in a car.

She was hit twice in the neck and once in the chest, Kent Police told the inquest.

Ms Smith, 43, from Slough, died at the scene despite an off-duty firefighter performing CPR.

Det Sgt James Dolby told the inquest that Ms Smith had informed her sister on the day of the shooting that she was leaving Mr Smith.

She had got on a train from their home in Slough to stay with family in Kent, the inquest was told.

After Mr Smith, 43, tracked her down to the pub and began shouting for her, Ms Smith exited the pub and sat in her friend’s car. Mr Smith then began to leave, but seconds later reversed and blocked the pub car park exit with his car, the inquest was told.

He then fired four shots at Ms Smith from close range, during the incident which lasted less than two minutes, the inquest heard.

Following the shooting, Mr Smith went into a fish and chip shop and pulled out his hand gun to demand a knife, Det Sgt Dolby told the inquest.

In a voice note sent to a relative at about 20:30 BST on 14 February, Mr Smith said: “We have had a bit of tragedy today. I have just shot my wife, Lisa.

“Things aren’t looking good.

“Hopefully I’m going to get into heaven with my wife.”

The inquest heard that Mr Smith also made another call to somebody who told him, “you don’t need to do this, god is not ready to take you, it will all be fine”.

Coroner Katrina Hepburn said his calls and voice notes showed he was “contemplating his own death”.

She concluded that Ms Smith died from “killed unlawfully” and that Mr Smith had “the requisite intent to kill her or cause serious bodily harm.”