A YOUNG woman became pregnant by her college tutor and hanged herself in her special constable’s uniform, days before she was due to have an abortion.
An inquest heard Tatjana ‘Tammy’ Paterson, 24, was found hanged at her home in St Mark’s Avenue, Connah’s Quay, on July 6 last year.
Her tutor at Deeside College, John Lewis, said initially “she wanted our baby” and wanted to be with him.
But she changed her mind about the baby, said she wanted an abortion and wanted to continue with her career.
“I supported her in that decision,” he said in a statement read out at the inquest at Mold Crown Court.
Mrs Paterson, a Lithuanian national whose maiden name was Vitaite, had wanted to become a police officer.
She had been sworn in as a Special Constable with North Wales Police and had received her uniform but had not started her duties.
On the afternoon she died she sent a text to her husband, Ian George Paterson, 28, to Mr Lewis, and to other family and friends, which read: “I am going to die, sorry.”
Mr Paterson, a student, told the inquest they met when they both worked at a factory in Sandycroft. They married in February, 2009 and had a daughter.
In September, 2011 she started a public service course at Deeside College and she started to train as a special constable. Mr Paterson said they separated in May last year.
Mr Paterson, of Hamilton Drive, Sandycroft, said he moved in with his parents for four days but he and his wife decided to give it another try and he moved back in, but it did not work out and he then moved out for good.
At that stage he was not aware of her relationship with Mr Lewis. She was studying and working part time at Asda, Queensferry, and working towards becoming a Special Constable.
Mr Paterson said he became aware of his wife’s relationship with Mr Lewis and she told him she was pregnant with Mr Lewis’ child. She said at the time she had made a mistake but she was going to keep the baby and did not agree with abortion.
On July 5 she went for an assessment and was due to have an abortion the following Monday but died the Friday before.
Mr Paterson said he received a text from her saying: “I still love you” in the week before she died. Then he received the final text saying: “I am going to die, sorry.”
Mr Lewis, of Llandderfel, near Bala, said he had known her since the summer of 2011 when he interviewed her for the public services course starting in September, 2011.
In the statement read out to the inquest he said he was aware she was married with a child and she confided in him about her problems.
She said she felt she could trust him and he also referred her for college counselling.
He was aware she was having problems in her marriage and believed she left her husband about Christmas.
In May last year she asked him that if things were different would he date her? He told her that because of teacher/student confidentiality he could not.
But they became friends and later their relationship changed and “things happened which should not have” and said they were both vulnerable at the time.
Within weeks of finishing the course she said she was pregnant.
She later said she wanted an abortion and wanted to continue with her career. Mr Lewis said he supported her. “We were hoping for a future together,” he explained.
That day she did not answer his text messages and refused to answer his calls. He went to Asda to see her but was told she had not arrived for work, and at 2.05pm he received the text saying she was going to die.
Mr Lewis said he was frantic. He and her brother went to her house which was locked. He got in through a window and found her in the bedroom.
Mr Lewis said the relationship only blossomed in the last weeks of her college course. He had respect for her and her wishes, he loved her and he wanted to be with her.
“I never imaged she would feel that this was the only way of dealing with her emotions,” he said.
She had left notes on the bed, one for her daughter and her husband, and one written in Lithuanian.
A post mortem examination showed the cause of death was asphyxia due to hanging.
North East Wales coroner John Gittins recorded a verdict of suicide and described it as “a very, very sad case”.
It was a waste of a young life, he said.
Mr Gittins described Mrs Paterson as “quite a troubled soul” in many ways and said she had a difficult and traumatic childhood in Lithuania, where her stepfather had been murdered.