Police were last night questioning a City management consultant after his wife was found murdered at their home in Benenden. Stuart Andrews, 54, was discharged from hospital where he was taken with injuries after his arrest in London on Friday.
His wife, Caroline, aged 52, was found dead at their home in the village on Thursday afternoon. The couple moved to Benenden in 2009 after selling their home in Eynsford, according to newspaper reports. Staff and children at Benenden Primary School, where Mrs Andrews worked as a supply teacher, were in shock at the news this week.
Mr Andrews, 54, an Oxford graduate who has worked as an advisor to the Bank of England, had been in hospital recovering from injuries since his arrest, and police had been keeping a bedside vigil while he recovered.
His wife, Caroline, 52, was found dead on Thursday afternoon inside the four-bedroom rented house in The Street that they shared with their two daughters.
The village of Benenden was in shock this week as residents took in the tragedy that had unfolded on their doorstep.
Gill Knox, headteacher of Benenden Primary School, where Mrs Andrews worked, said everyone was ‘shocked and saddened’.
She said: “Caroline has been a loved and well respected supply teacher here for a number of years, who has enriched the lives of many of the children she has taught.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with her family, and all who knew her and will miss her.”
A book of condolence was opened at St George’s Church in the village and prayers were offered at the service on Sunday.
The couple had been married for 31 years and have four children. The eldest son, Charles, 26, is an organist and his brother, 23-year-old Harry is a graduate. They also have two daughters, Polly, aged 19, and Kitty, 14.
The family have two dogs and kept chickens in the garden.
Mr Andrews has worked at AlixPartners in the City as an information management consultant since 2014. Previously, he has worked at HSBC and the Royal Bank of Scotland.
His arrest on Friday came after a dramatic police manhunt during which armed police boarded a London-bound train from Gillingham. They eventually caught up with him in the capital on Friday afternoon.
It is understood that the family had been given three months’ notice to leave the house by the landlord.
A statement from Kent Police said: “Police were called to The Street, Benenden, on Thursday, February 4 at 4.20pm, where they discovered the body of 52-year-old Caroline Andrews. A post-mortem examination of Mrs Andrews took place on Friday, February 5 and the death is being treated as a murder inquiry.
“Police made extensive searches throughout part of Kent, including the rail network, to locate a man wanted in connection with the incident. The man was located in the London area on the afternoon of February 5 and taken to a hospital for treatment to injuries.”
