A former police officer has pleaded guilty to murdering his wife and attempting to kill her new partner.
Benjamin McLean, 48, appeared in the Invercargill High Court on Thursday morning. He stood in the dock with his head bowed as he entered his pleas
He killed Verity McLean after she left him for Garry Duggan, who was a former friend of McLean.
At the time of the attack McLean was off-duty from his job as a constable in Invercargill.
The McLeans had been married for two decades, with three children. McLean had known Mr Duggan for 15 years.
On Anzac Day earlier this year, McLean cycled to the Otepuni address where his wife and Mr Duggan had been living, armed with a gun fitted with a silencer.
He tied Ms McLean to a couch and shot her under the chin, then waited for Mr Duggan to arrive.
He shot Mr Duggan twice but failed to kill him. Mr Duggan managed to wrestle the gun off McLean, forcing the killer to flee.
The constable later handed himself in at the Invercargill Police Station - his regular workplace.
He will be sentenced next week
Newshub.
