Thomas Rainey doused wife Katrina in petrol and set her on fire

A mother-of-six died after her husband threw a bucket of petrol over her and set her on fire while she was trapped in her car, a court has heard.

Katrina Rainey, 53, gave an account of the incident to emergency services at the scene at her family farm before she died.

Thomas Rainey, of Quarry Road in Knockloughrim, County Londonderry, previously pleaded guilty to murder.

He appeared at Belfast Crown Court, where his family was present.

The 61-year-old is due to be sentenced on 5 July, with Mr Justice O'Hara saying he was likely to be jailed for a "significant period of time".

The defence said Rainey was a man who was "horrified" at what he had done.

The prosecution described the murder, which was carried out in October 2021 with the couple's children present, as "gratuitously violent".

The judge, Mr Justice O'Hara, said it was the "ultimate act of domestic violence".

The incident happened at the family's home while Mrs Rainey had been preparing to go to work in October 2021, the court heard.

She had got into her car and turned on the ignition when her husband opened the passenger door, threw the petrol over her and set her on fire.

When the emergency services arrived at the scene, Mrs Rainey was being tended to by her children.

She was spoken to by emergency services before being sedated and taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast where she later died.

In footage recorded by police on a body-worn camera, the victim described how she couldn't get out of the car because her seatbelt had been on.

"I needed to get some help so I put my hand on the horn," she said.

The police had asked Mrs Rainey if she knew why her husband had done what he did.

The prosecution told the court she said their marriage had been unhappy for some time.

"She told police she wanted him out of the house and had been to a solicitor," the prosecution said.

They said the apparent reason for the killing was that the accused "feared division of the farm", which he had inherited from an aunt.

The court heard that 90% of Mrs Rainey's body was burned in the incident - injuries that were described as "unsurvivable".

Rainey had originally denied the charge of murder and a psychiatric report was ordered.

However, he was subsequently rearraigned and, in May, he pleaded guilty to a single count of murder.

At the tariff hearing on Thursday, the defence said there were a number of mitigating factors in the case, including the fact Rainey had a "long history of mental health problems".

The defence also pointed out the accused and his wife had experienced the death of one of their children in a "tragic accident" in 2002.

The defence accepted Mrs Rainey's murder had been premeditated, but it was "not significant premeditation" as it was "minutes rather than hours or days".