HEARTBROKEN dad Lloyd Doble told of his anguish today after his daughter's killer husband was jailed for life for burning her in a holiday cottage.

Natalie Rhee, 25, whose parents Lloyd and Georgina live at Field Garden, Steventon, died in the fire at the house in the Conwy Valley, north Wales, in April last year.

Her husband Jong, 34, denied deliberately starting the blaze at the cottage in Llanrwst but was convicted of murder yesterday.

A jury at Chester Crown Court heard how the calculating killer torched the cottage so he could claim £250,000 life insurance to cover gambling debts.

Speaking at a press conference after the verdict, RAF Air Commodore Mr Doble said: "She was a trusting person and was totally devoted to her husband and their future together. Of all people, she did not deserve to have been deceived by such treachery.

"Nothing will bring Natalie back but at least justice has been done and her husband will now have to wrestle with his conscience and with the ultimate consequences of his evil act.

"To lose a child of whatever age is every parent's nightmare but to lose your daughter at the hands of her husband in such a cold, calculating and horrific manner is doubly hard to bear.

"Natalie was a very special young lady - attractive, intelligent, practical and so full of vitality.

"She enjoyed living life to the full and had such a loving and considerate personality that she made friends with consummate ease. She is missed by so many." After the court hearing, it emerged that as a teenager Rhee was charged with the murder of a Kent shopkeeper in 1980 but was cleared by an Old Bailey jury.

Det Insp Nick Crabtree, of North Wales Police, said Rhee was a "cold-blooded and truly evil man" who had given much time and thought to exactly how he would set about committing the "most callous of crimes" by convincing police and fire investigators that Natalie's death was an accident.

He added: "He was privileged to have secured the deep love of a young and beautiful woman, described by all who knew her as very kind and caring and one of life's true optimists.

"Having secured that love, Rhee chose to betray it, secretly indulging himself in a lavish and extravagant lifestyle."

He said Rhee's gambling habit lost him £90,000 in West End casinos and added: "When Natalie's money had all but gone and her usefulness was all but exhausted, he cold-bloodedly and systematically plotted her murder and at the same time set about increasing her life insurance cover to just over £250,000."

Rhee had previous convictions for burglary and theft of a car, wasting police time and another theft which resulted in two weeks' jail.

Det Insp Crabtree said Rhee's first and possibly greatest mistake was choosing the beautiful setting of the Conwy Valley as the location for the murder. The crime then led to a painstaking police inquiry.

"As a consequence of that investigation, Rhee finds himself starting a very just and appropriate life sentence," he added.

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