A SPURNED husband who cut up all of his wife's clothes after she ended their 44 year relationship has walked free from court with a suspended jail sentence.

Philip Gamble, 59, cut out the crotches of his wife Jean's bikinis, sliced down the back of every one of her tops and slashed her trousers, Gloucester Crown Court was told today.

The Cirencester father-of-three originally appeared before the court for sentencing six months ago and admitted burglary with intent to cause criminal damage and doing criminal damage to her clothing.

At that hearing, Judge Jamie Tabor QC deferred sentence to see if Gamble could stay out of further trouble and told him he would not send him to prison if he behaved himself.

Today Gamble swore on oath that he had not offended again or been questioned, arrested or charged in any criminal enquiry.

Judge Tabor accepted his word and sentenced him to a total of three months imprisonment, suspended for a year. He also ordered him to pay costs and a surcharge totalling £180.

"You are a man who had never been in trouble and then when your very long marriage came to an end you couldn't cope, for whatever reason, and you acted very sillily," said the judge.

"But you are not a villain. You were a fool at the time. "

Prosecutor Julian Kesner said that after doing the damage to 55-year-old Mrs Gamble's clothes, the defendant put everything neatly away again.

She didn’t realise what he had done until she started to pack her belongings to leave their flat.

Gamble also damaged the mattress and duvet on their bed, cut the curtains and poured bleach on them - and turned off the fridge freezer.

The total value of the damage he did was £5,000 to her clothing and £637 to the flat.

The court was told that Mrs Gamble had shocked her husband by announcing at the end of last year that she wanted a divorce and had found another man.

They had met when he was 15 and she was 11. They had been married for 38 years.

At the time of the offences, Mrs Gamble was warden of sheltered accommodation in Barclay Court, Cirencester, and her husband lived there with her.

Joe Maloney, defending, said: “She went off with another man, leaving him with £15,000 of mutual debts to settle. He is at a very low ebb. But he certainly accepts that his 38 year marriage is now at an end.”

He said the relationship was now totally over and Gamble had not seen her for a year. He was, however, still in contact with his children aged 31, 33, and 38.

Because of his health problems he is unable to work and receives disability living allowance, Mr Maloney said.

With the aid of Turning Poing, Gamble had tackled his drink problem and had not touched a drop since March 22 this year, he added.