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A former public school hockey coach and international player has been jailed for life over the murder of his wife at the marital home. Mohamed Samak, 43, had claimed Joanne, 49, had stabbed herself to death after struggling with alcohol and her mental health. A court heard that when Mrs Samak's child was told that she had died, the boy replied: ‘I’m too young not to have a mummy.’ But prosecutors said Samak, a former Egyptian international hockey player and Malvern College coach , killed his wife because he was suffering financial problems and had become interested in another woman. The former hotel events organiser was also unhappy with the fact the couple slept in separate bedrooms, jurors heard. Samak's murder conviction on Wednesday came eight months after jurors had been unable to reach a verdict in an earlier trial. Upon hearing the unanimous verdict the suited defendant collapsed to the floor wailing, forcing the courtroom to be cleared before he could be bundled to the cells. Today Samak appeared in the dock wearing a black sweatshirt. Sentencing him to a mandatory life sentence with a minimum term of 21 years at Worcester Crown Court, Judge James Burbidge KC told Samak he had 'plunged' the knife into his wife's body with great force. The judge added: 'She had no chance to defend herself from you or ward you off. 'She screamed so loud that a neighbour heard her.' The judge said Samak, who had first aid training, could have attempted to save his wife if it was a momentary loss of control - but insead he waited an hour to dial 999, by which time she was already dead. The judge told Samak: 'To suggest that she was a woman who would have left her son by killing herself is frankly wicked.' The court haerd that after the 483 days Samak has served on remand is taken into account, the defendant will serve a minimum term of 19 years and 247 days. Throughout this morning's hearing, Samak sat silently weeping with his head bowed, occasionally talking to himself in agonised tones in the dock. The court heard the starting point for the minimum term Samak would have to serve under his life sentence was 15 years, but aggravating features included the use of a knife and the fact this was a case involving domestic violence. Mrs Samak’s mother, Penny Vale, sobbed on the witness stand as she read out her victim impact statement which told of her devastation at the loss of her daughter. ‘The loss of our beloved Jo in such a traumatic way has had a profound effect on all her family and friends', she said. ‘We will never get over her loss as she was such a big part of all our lives. ‘Her precious young son has been deprived of all her precious love and support as he goes through his life.' She said that when told of her death, the child responded: ‘I’m too young not to have a Mummy.’ Mrs Vale added: ‘Telling him Mummy had died through the night was the most heartbreaking conversation. How do we now find the words to say it was because of his father? ‘She was my baby. I watched her grow into a beautiful, competent and caring adult. ‘There were such a number of things we did together…I miss our regular days out.’ Referring to Samak’s attempts to portray his victim as unstable through alcohol and mental health issues, she said the defendant, who was known as Sam, had ‘falsely portrayed Jo’s character’. Mrs Vale added: ‘The truth is evident in the evidence of her family and friends who saw she had everything to live for.’ The victim’s brother, Mark Vale, also broke down in tears as he told the court: ‘Since Jo’s death, every day has been a nightmare’. Mr Vale added: ‘I wake up thinking of her and go to bed thinking the same. ‘The loss of Jo has impacted my family hugely. Her loss has left an unfillable gap in all our lives.’ Prrosecutor Matthew Brook KC told the judge the only mitigating feature in the case was Samak's previous clean record. He said the evidence was clear 'that the defendant intended to kill his wife. 'He went downstairs and got the knife. He came back upstairs and at the point of infliction must have been holding her from behind. 'He then stabbed her six times. The stab wound to the heart penetrated the sternum and on the evidence, must have included significant force.' Mr Brook added: 'He then waited for Jo to die. In fact the evidence is, he watched her die.' John Jones KC, defending, said the attack on Mrs Samak was 'out of character', adiding: 'If there was intention to kill, and we say, if, then it was only momentarily held.' The five-week trial heard the Samaks had drifted apart and Mrs Samak had become frustrated at her husband's failure to find sufficient work,which left her as the main breadwinner. Up to 30 of the victim's relatives, friends and neighbours packed the public gallery throughout the trial. Egyptian Samak, who had previously represented his homeland at international level, was a member of the England over-40s hockey squad. Jurors heard the defendant had been under financial pressure – and had enjoyed a liaison with an 'old flame' in London shortly before the murder at their home in July last year. In a dramatic development, mid-way through the trial police returned to the murder scene in Droitwich, Worcestershire, to carry out a fresh search of the property - and jurors were told Mrs Samak's blood had been found on a sock and on a black, hockey t-shirt belonging to her husband. The items, which also included a flannel and a grey long-sleeved top, were inside a bag containing Mrs Samak's clothes which her killer had hidden in the loft of the marital home, and which had later been moved to the garage by a relative. West Mercia Police has declined to reveal what led officers to re-search the Samaks' home. Samak told the jury he was woken up by a scream from his wife and went out on to the landing at their home to see her stabbing herself. But jurors were told that a neighbour had been woken by a scream at 3.10am on July 1 last year – yet it was almost an hour later when Samak dialled 999. He told a 999 call handler he had found his wife slumped on the bed – and that 'she's got a knife in her tummy', the court heard. He told the trial he had lied at first because he panicked and feared he would be blamed for her injuries. He said he had waited an hour to call police because he was 'in shock'. Mrs Samak – who had been making preparations for her 50th birthday celebrations in August and was planning a trip to Paris with friends when she died - suffered multiple stab wounds but it was a knife wound to the heart that killed her. Jurors also heard she had set an alarm on her phone for the following morning, when she was due to pick up a colleague before they headed to Hampshire to dress a show home. During cross-examination, Prosecutor Matthew Brook KC told Samak that he was a liar and had got blood on his clothes after he had stabbed his wife to death. 'You repeatedly lied to the police. You were thinking, 'I'll keep giving the same account until evidence forces me to change my account',' said Mr Brook. Samak said: 'I lied out of fear. I felt the blame would be on me because I got blood on my clothes. I am a liar. But I'm not a killer. 'I did not kill my wife.' The trial heard Samak was named on a number of insurance policies as a beneficiary in the event of his wife's death. Following Samak's conviction, police released bodycam footage showing Samak wailing 'why are you doing this to me?' as he was arrested for murdering his wife. The killer also pleaded pleaded with officers to speak to the wife he had just stabbed to death. The West Mercia force also released an audio clip of Samak's 999 call - and his police interview where a detective accuses him of lying to the call taker and police about the cricumstances of his wife's death. Samak was head coach of the Welsh under-18s boys and girls hockey and previously head of boys' hockey at Malvern College until 2021, which costs up to £57,285-a-year to attend. He met his wife in 2011 when she was on holiday in Egypt and he was in charge of sports and activities provision for guests at the Hilton hotel where she stayed. The couple married in 2014 but during a night out with friends less than 48 hours before she died, Mrs Samak admitted that she no longer loved the defendant, but felt she could not leave him as he would not survive in the UK without her. Following the verdict on Wednesday, Jonathan Roe, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: 'Mohamed Samak killed his wife and tried to claim she had taken her own life, repeatedly lying to police to avoid responsibility. 'This callous attempt to present his crime as a suicide has caused further anguish to Jo's family. 'Thankfully, the jury saw through his lies and convicted him for this heinous crime against a defenceless woman who had her whole life to look forward to – and could never have imagined her own husband would cause her such serious harm.' West Mercia Police said it had not referred itself to the police watchdog over the failure to uncover the bloodied clothes in the loft during an intial search of the Samaks' house 'because it does not meet the criteria.' A spokesman said there had also been no prior police contact with the couple. He added: 'A thorough search of the property was carried out at the time and all items believed relevant were seized. A second search was carried out after further information came to light.' The force said a review of the initial search had identified officers had acted appropriately. In a statement released through the force on Wednesday, Mrs Samak's family said she was 'kind and caring to everyone that touched her life' and added:: 'Jo's zest for life was infectious. 'She was generous, creative and full of fun, with a wonderful sense of style and a passion for interior design, fashion, art and nature. 'Jo had so much more life to live, and we will miss her and love her forever'.
