Ex army major pleads guilty to wife murder

A former British Army major has admitted strangling his wife in their Victorian home but rejects the police version of how he did it.

David Whitelegg, 54, was due to stand trial for the murder of Anne Whitelegg on September 18, 2014, before he entered a plea of guilty in the Victorian Supreme Court on Wednesday.

Police say that after the killing he gave away his cat and wrote to his mother in England claiming responsibility for his wife's death and apologising for having "stained" the family name.

Whitelegg had initially called a funeral director saying his wife died unexpectedly, according to court documents.

Following the call, police went to the couple's home in Wallan and found Mrs Whitelegg on the kitchen floor with marks on her neck.

Whitelegg allegedly told officers he found her dead in the garage and dragged her into the kitchen.

In a later statement, he said Mrs Whitelegg had left their home after an argument a few days earlier and he had not seen her until discovering her body.

Court documents tendered at an earlier Melbourne Magistrates Court hearing said the couple had been unhappy and Mrs Whitelegg had said she would get half their marital assets if they split up.

Police allege Whitelegg said he would rather see her dead than let her take half of everything.

After the murder, Whitelegg, who served in both the British and Australian armies, put his affairs in order and tried to take his own life.

He transferred $100,000 to his mother's bank account and gave the cat to the RSPCA.

He wrote a letter to his solicitor bequeathing his assets to his mother, and then wrote to his mother to admit the murder and apologise for the stain on the family name.

Whitelegg had pleaded not guilty to the crime in the Melbourne Magistrates Court last year, but on Wednesday admitted the crime before Justice Lex Lasry.

The court heard Whitelegg will dispute he used a ligature to strangle his wife when he returns to court for a plea hearing on May 27.

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