A PHARMACIST accused of murder searched 'I need to kill my wife' before strangling her in a staged burglary to run off with his lover, a jury has been told.

The Crown is opening its case against Mitesh Patel, who has denied the murder of wife Jessica at Teesside Crown Court.

The couple ran a pharmacy on Roman Road in Linthorpe, Middlesbrough. Wife Jessica was found dead at their home nearby on The Avenue in May.

Prosecutor Nicholas Campbell QC told jurors about internet searches stretching back more than five years.

Mr Campbell says Patel explored how much insulin was needed to kill a healthy non-diabetic, as his wife was.

And Mr Campbell said while Jessica was going through a cycle of IVF, Patel was researching how to strangle someone, the effects of strangulation and how long it took for a person to die from strangulation.

Mr Campbell tells the hearing Patel also looked into hiring a hitman on the "dark web".

Searches were deleted, but that did not remove all digital trace of them.

In March 2014, he searched for "how much methadone will kill you," added the Crown QC.

Days before her death, while he and his wife were on holiday in Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands, Patel was seeking sex online, said Mr Campbell.

The prosecutor says Patel was also searching about "Life after loss of spouse", "Finding your way after losing a spouse", "Coping with the death of your spouse", "The death of spouse, rebuilding your life after the first year", and "How do I arrange a funeral".

The court had earlier heard Patel stood to profit to the tune of £2m from her death.

Opening the case on the first day of evidence at Teesside Crown Court, Mr Campbell said Patel strangled his wife then falsely claimed their house had been burgled - a burglary he had "stage managed".

The couple were alone in the house together when she was murdered, the prosecution said.

He alleged Patel planned to start a new life in Australia with his "soulmate".

Mr Campbell said: "He was planning to use the money to start a new life in Australia and that life would be shared with the person who he really loved, one who he regarded as his soul mate, another man."

The court previously heard that the 37-year-old had been unfaithful to his wife throughout their marriage including blokes he met for sexual intercourse on the internet, it was said.

Judge James Goss QC told potential jurors at Teesside crown court that they would be excused from sitting on the trial if they had used Grindr in the last seven years.

Patel, 37, has denied the charge of murdering Mrs Patel, 34, on May 14.

Jessica suffered serious injuries before she died at the couple's semi-detached home. Emergency services were called to the address at about 8.20pm and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police activity also focused on the nearby Roman Road pharmacy, which the couple ran together.