A MILKING Bank man, dumped by his wife just two days after their wedding, has been told by a Judge he faces life imprisonment after he was convicted of trying to kill her and savagely stabbing to death her new boyfriend.

David Slater went out on a "mission of vengeance" after learning his bride Alison Edwards had started a relationship with 50-year-old Kenneth Westwood.

Slater who argued with his wife just hours after they said "I do" at their £4,000 wedding ceremony armed himself with a large kitchen knife before driving to the home she was sharing with Mr Westwood in Monument Lane, Sedgley.

He then stabbed 51 year old Alison twice and it was only by luck she survived, said Mr David Williams QC prosecuting, but Mr Westwood died on his doorstep after he was stabbed three times.

Slater of Sudeley Gardens, Milking Bank had denied attempting to murder his wife and also to murdering Mr Westwood - described as a man of positive good character.

But the six man-six woman jury at Wolverhampton Crown Court returned unanimous guilty verdicts on both charges after retiring for nearly four hours to consider the evidence at the end of his trial.

Judge John Warner adjourned sentencing on Slater until today but ruled, "He knows he is going to get life - it is just a question of how long he must serve in prison."

The judge said he wanted to reflect on the verdicts returned by the jury as he told the court the basic minimum for the offences was 15 years behind bars.

"He is entitled to some reduction for what I would call his mental condition," said the judge who went on, "I need time to think about the matter before reaching a decision."

The trial heard Slater had told a friend he was going to kill his wife and her new boyfriend after being told their address and he armed himself with the knife before going out in a rage.

"He did exactly what he intended to do," Mr Williams told the jury. "It may have been out of character and on the spur of the moment. But this was murder and Mr Westwood was deliberately killed by him."

In evidence Slater, who has two children from his first marriage, maintained he loved his wife and he had gone to the house simply because he wanted some answers.

The former prison officer said he had been attacked with a piece of wood by his wife before Mr Westwood grabbed him around the throat and stressed he could not recall using the knife. "I did not intend to hurt or stab anyone," he said. "I just wanted Alison to talk to me."