A former international hockey player turned coach has been charged with the murder of his wife.
Mohammed Samak, 42, is to appear before magistrates today after his wife Joanne, 49, was found seriously injured at their home.
Samak is a former Egyptian international hockey player. According to his Facebook profile he is the head coach of the Welsh under 18s boys and girls hockey teams. A source said he was employed on a casual basis: ‘He does a great job for us and has done for a very long time.’
He was previously a hockey coach at Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and head coach of boys hockey at fee-paying Malvern College.
Mrs Samak, 42, a senior stylist with an interior design firm, was discovered with serious injuries at the couple’s the £250,000 property in Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire, at 4.10am on Monday.
Despite the efforts of paramedics, she was pronounced dead at the scene. The couple are understood to have a young son.
Mrs Samak’s father Richard Vale said the family were devastate by her sudden death.
‘We are all in a state of disbelief and shock,’ he said.
Her family today paid tribute to a much-loved daughter and mother and said: ‘We will continue to love and miss you forever.’
In a statement, they said: ‘Jo was a loving, sensitive and generous person. She was so hard working and talented. She was looking forward to so much in her life.
‘We are so thankful for Jo and have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and tributes from all who knew her.
‘Jo, you are so loved by all your family and friends. Words fail us. We will continue to love and miss you forever.’
Neighbours said they saw police cars coming down the quiet cul de sac in the early hours on Monday.
One resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said: ‘Nothing ever happens in this little close. I don’t know how I feel, in all honesty. We have been told it is serious.’
West Midlands Ambulance Service said medics found the woman in a critical condition and attempted to administer advanced life support.
A service spokesperson said: ‘We were called at 4.12am on Monday to an incident at a private address on Chestnut Spinney in Droitwich Spa.
‘Two ambulances, a paramedic officer and a Critical Care Car from Midlands Air Ambulance attended the scene. Upon arrival, we found a woman in a critical condition.
‘Ambulance staff administered advanced life support to her, but unfortunately, it became clear that nothing more could be done to save her, and she was confirmed deceased.’
In a statement, West Mercia Police said Samak had been charged with murder and was to appear at Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court later today.
Residents living on the quiet residential street reacted to the woman’s death.
One neighbour said: ‘Nothing ever happens on this street, it was all very unexpected. We woke up on Monday morning to a bunch of police vans and crime scene forensics and that sort of stuff.
‘We didn’t really know the couple, I believe they are married.’
Another resident added: ‘There has been police just constantly coming and going. We don’t really know the people who live there, I think they were a fairly young couple. I don’t know what’s gone on. It makes you realise, you just don’t know these days. It makes you feel a bit wary, it’s only natural.
‘Nothing like this has happened here before to my knowledge.’