Husband caught on CCTV urinating in terminally ill wife's drinks spared jail

Husband caught on CCTV urinating in terminally ill wife's drinks spared jail Keith Foster, 66, was said to have 'lost the plot' having apparently become infuriated when his terminally ill wife included her children in her will A man who was caught urinating into bottles and cups which his terminally ill wife later drank from has spared jail. Keith Foster launched a sickening campaign of abuse against his wife after turning to drink and drugs following her cancer diagnosis in November 2023, a court heard. The sunbed business owner was said to have "lost the plot" having apparently become infuriated when she included her children in her will. Foster made "degrading comments" towards his wife, locking her out of their home, and being "physically intimidating," Liverpool Crown Court heard on Tuesday. He also accused her of having an affair with a priest and threatened to harm her elderly parents. David Polglase, prosecuting, said Foster was "angered" after learning the victim had left items and the house to three of the children in her will, and a portion of her business to him. "That led to him saying he would attack her parents' house, that he had sorted a black Ford Focus to do so," Mr Polglase said. "She describes being terrified and genuinely fearful that the defendant would try to harm her family." Foster's marriage with the victim was said to have been plagued by "issues and problems", with his behaviour having "deteriorated" over time, causing her concern. She initiated divorce proceedings around August 2024 as a result, with both continuing to live in the same house but "staying apart as much as possible". This was said to have led to a "hostile environment," with Foster becoming a heavy drinker, making "horrible comments" and using his stature "to intimidate her, standing over her and being in her face" as well as punching walls. This was accompanied by frequent insults including "slut, slag and gold digger," reports the Liverpool Echo. Suspicions over Foster's behaviour led his step-daughter to set up a CCTV system in her bedroom, with her mum having then done likewise in her own room, the living room and the kitchen. This came after the former found he had "mixed a bottle of water with what she suspected was urine or cleaning fluid", leaving his wife "feeling nauseous" when she had taken a drink from it. With his step-daughter also having fallen ill after drinking a coffee which Foster had made for her, the cameras then caught him "urinating into crockery in the kitchen", with three further clips of capturing him filling bottles in her room with a yellow liquid. Mr Polglase added of the videos: "He is clearly unaware or does not care that he is being videoed." Police were called to the family home on January 26 last year. Foster denied his crimes after being arrested and taken into custody at Copy Lane Police Station. Mr Polglase said of a statement written by his now ex-wife that while she cannot blame any person for her cancer, "the detrimental impact of the defendant's behaviour has continued to place a strain on her body when she needed stability and support." Her daughter, a paramedic, said she was "frightened about how far the defendant's behaviour had gone and reinforced feelings of having to protect herself at home," Mr Polglase said. "She [...] says that witnessing controlling and manipulative behaviour towards her mum while she was unwell was distressing for her. Her mum should have felt safe and supported." Foster has a total of 10 previous convictions for 17 offences, including robbery as a youth in 1978 and being jailed for wounding with intent in 1991. However, he has no appearances since a drink driving matter in 2007. Carmel Wilde, defending, said he had expressed remorse, taken responsibility for his actions and admitted that he had "lost the plot". "He did not deal very well with the diagnosis of his wife's cancer," Wilde told the court. "He turned to alcohol as a means of self management when he should have been supporting his wife through a dreadful time for her. "He further admits that he was using cocaine and drinking. That is not an excuse for such behaviour, but it is a contributing factor." She added that Foster has been working on his mental health, and attending counselling alongside drug and alcohol support. Sentencing, Judge Robert Trevor-Jones said Foster's wife was "immensely vulnerable", but that "instead of standing by her, you seem to have become estranged from her." "That was underlined when you discovered that she had made a will, in which you were only going to partially benefit and her children would be in receipt of the majority of the relevant estate. "Quite clearly, that discovery angered you and you became aggrieved. Really, what happened after all of that is that, with grudge, you exacted some sort of revenge to her." The judge added: "On repeated occasions, you locked her out of the house. All of this prompted [the victim's daughter] to set up a camera and, in turn, so did her mother about the house. "What they discovered, quite sickeningly, is you going about the house, urinating in various receptacles, including, specifically, a bottle of water by her bedside. She ingested some of it. "Further footage revealed quite how much you had involved yourself in that quite disgusting way. You were behaving in a quite domineering way, all designed to intimidate your former wife." Foster admitted controlling and coercive behaviour and two counts of administering a noxious substance with intent to injure, aggrieve or annoy. He was handed a three-year imprisonment suspended for 18 months with a probation requirement and a building choices programme. Foster was also handed restraining orders banning him from contacting his ex-wife and her daughter for four years, as well as being told to pay court costs of £1,500 at a rate of £400 per month.