A former Scotland Yard counter-terror officer left a dead rabbit in his wife’s bed just weeks before blowing himself up in their home, an inquest has heard.
Retired superintendent Malcolm Baker, 60, died in September 2022 after apparently dousing himself in petrol after police arrived at his remote property on Exmoor to arrest him.
Mr Baker’s widow, Francesca Onody told an inquest into his death at Wells Coroner’s Court that she had repeatedly reported her husband’s abusive behaviour to police before his death.
His ‘strange’ behaviour included placing a dead rabbit in her bed after she had spoken to her friend about the Godfather film.
Ms Onody said Mr Baker had been an abusive husband, would drink up to 18 cans of cider each day, and had stockpiled 125 litres of petrol in and around the family home.
His behaviour was said to have spiralled after Ms Onody filed for a divorce in April 2022.
She alleged that he cancelled the family’s house insurance before the explosion, before telling: ‘You will get half of nothing.’
Mr Baker worked on cases including the fatal poisoning of ex-KGB agent-turned Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko in 2006 and assisted the US authorities with the response to 9/11.
Malcolm Baker (pictured) died after an explosion took place at his home in Exmoor National Park in September 2022
Police had arrived to arrest Mr Baker over abuse allegations made by his wife shortly before the blast
Mr Baker’s wife and family were able to evacuate the house before it exploded
Ms Onody said she had made both domestic abuse and fraud complaints related to Mr Baker to Avon and Somerset Police over a period of months.
She was said to have disclosed to police that she had ‘a couple of hundred audio recordings of him being abusive, bank statements showing his financial abuse, whatsapp messages and other forms of comms he had sent’.
Ms Onody said she also told police about the incident with the dead rabbit, which took place around a month before the fatal explosion.
She told the court: ‘On one occasion he left a dead rabbit on my bed after a conversation I had with a friend about the Godfather films and I told him I was really worried.’
She said her husband’s behaviour on one particular occasion ‘had been really strange, instead of shouting abuse or doing other horrible things he had just been sat in silence staring at me’.
She continued: ‘He had started storing petrol in the house, he put a container by the front door, back door and another…my daughter had moved home and it was just the tension in the house.’
Officers attended the property on two occasions before the explosion – both in July 2022 – but Mr Baker retreated to his room and refused to answer questions.
Mr Baker is alleged to have cancelled the insurance on the property before blowing himself up inside
The family home, Hiccombe House, in Brompton Regis, west Somerset, which was destroyed in the fire
‘They came down, chatted to me and left’ Ms Onody said.
On the day of the explosion, September 14, Mr Baker allegedly indecently exposed himself to Ms Onody, prompting her to call the police again.
Four officers attended the family home and when Mr Baker ‘barricaded’ himself inside his room, the court heard, officers attempted to break down the door.
Ms Onody, who was downstairs with her two children, recalled petrol passing through the floorboards and splashing her on the head. She said she initially thought it was a burst pipe, before officers came running down the stairs shouting to evacuate.
The family – except for Mr Baker – ran from the house before Ms Onody dashed back to retrieve a pet snake and to ensure their pet cats were safely out of the house.
Mr Baker was part of the team that investigated the poisoning of Mr Litvinenko (pictured) in 2006
Shortly after she left, the explosion blew off the roof and destroyed the upper floor of the house. It was heard almost a mile away.
The court also heard the ashes of the property were searched by specialists, who produced what they believe were what remained of Mr Baker’s body parts, which a forensic pathologist said ‘would be in keeping with a scenario of explosion.’
However, Dr Deborah Cook, who carried out the report also said the state and quantity of human remains recovered meant it was ‘not possible to provide a cause of death.’
Evidence from Mr Baker’s GP was that the ex-cop had no known mental health problems, telling the court in a statement: ‘I can confirm there are no consultations relating to any mental health problems. On review of his medical history, he does not have any medical health diagnoses either.’
But Ms Onody told the court her husband’s mental health had been deteriorating – but he refused to seek help because it might have jeopardised his business which involved ‘lots of scrutiny’ and ‘Could have impacted the company.’
The inquest, which is being heard by a jury, is due to last for five days.
