A married huntmaster was cleared yesterday of shooting his showjumper ex-lover after their five-year affair.
Brian Fraser, 63, was found not guilty of the attempted murder of Louise Leggatt, 55, and also of causing her grievous bodily harm with intent.
He was alleged to have been enraged at the end of his romance with Louise - who the court heard was known in hunting circles as ‘Leg-Over Leggatt’.
The verdicts came after a jury spent five and a half hours deliberating, following a two-week trial at Maidstone Crown Court.
But Fraser had already admitted possessing a firearm without a licence and was warned by the judge he could still be sent to prison.
Judge Charles Byers said: “You are at risk of serving a custodial sentence.
“I have never come across such a lackadaisical and irresponsible attitude towards firearms, particularly for someone who is described as a countryman.”
He bailed him him to return to court on March 18 to be sentenced over that matter.
The judge also told Fraser not to have any contact with Louise or her two grown-up sons Ben and William, saying: “I am considering a restraining order which even in the face of an acquittal I can make.”
Fraser showed no emotion as the verdicts were delivered but there were cheers and cries of ‘Yes’ from his family and friends in the public gallery, including his forgiving wife Nanette who looked tearful.
Louise, who was in court, held her head in her hands and looked shattered.
She was shot outside her secluded rented farmhouse home in Benenden, Kent, in March last year, as she went to tend her horses.
She suffered shotgun injuries to her pelvis and leg, and underwent surgery to remove some of the pellets.
Two months earlier, Louise’s home, The Pippins, was destroyed in an arson attack, forcing her to rent the next door property Bramleys, where she was shot.
Nobody was ever convicted for the arson.
Fraser and Louise met through the Ashford Valley Hunt in Kent in 2000 and became lovers in 2001.
He moved into her home and they had a five-year affair before Fraser returned to his wife of 26 years in October 2011, at their farm in Shadoxhurst.
Fraser denied he tried to rekindle their romance and was angry when she rejected him.
Giving evidence during the trial, twice-divorced Louise sobbed as she relived the “terrifying” moment she was shot in her front garden by a hidden gunman.
She said: “First of all, I heard a sound and then I just had the most horrendous pain in my leg and hip.
“I couldn’t use my right leg at all but I managed to get inside and drag myself across the floor to where the phone was to dial 999.
“I was absolutely terrified, I had never been so terrified in all my life.
"I was really, really scared that whoever had done this was going to come back in and I couldn’t get back to the door to lock the door.”
During the trial one of Louise’s ex-husbands, Philip Gorringe, admitted he had heard of her being referred to as ‘Leg-Over Leggatt’ in hunting circles.
Brian Fraser, 63, was found not guilty of the attempted murder of Louise Leggatt, 55, and also of causing her grievous bodily harm with intent.
He was alleged to have been enraged at the end of his romance with Louise - who the court heard was known in hunting circles as ‘Leg-Over Leggatt’.
The verdicts came after a jury spent five and a half hours deliberating, following a two-week trial at Maidstone Crown Court.
But Fraser had already admitted possessing a firearm without a licence and was warned by the judge he could still be sent to prison.
Judge Charles Byers said: “You are at risk of serving a custodial sentence.
“I have never come across such a lackadaisical and irresponsible attitude towards firearms, particularly for someone who is described as a countryman.”
He bailed him him to return to court on March 18 to be sentenced over that matter.
The judge also told Fraser not to have any contact with Louise or her two grown-up sons Ben and William, saying: “I am considering a restraining order which even in the face of an acquittal I can make.”
Fraser showed no emotion as the verdicts were delivered but there were cheers and cries of ‘Yes’ from his family and friends in the public gallery, including his forgiving wife Nanette who looked tearful.
Louise, who was in court, held her head in her hands and looked shattered.
She suffered shotgun injuries to her pelvis and leg, and underwent surgery to remove some of the pellets.
Two months earlier, Louise’s home, The Pippins, was destroyed in an arson attack, forcing her to rent the next door property Bramleys, where she was shot.
Nobody was ever convicted for the arson.
Fraser and Louise met through the Ashford Valley Hunt in Kent in 2000 and became lovers in 2001.
He moved into her home and they had a five-year affair before Fraser returned to his wife of 26 years in October 2011, at their farm in Shadoxhurst.
Fraser denied he tried to rekindle their romance and was angry when she rejected him.
Giving evidence during the trial, twice-divorced Louise sobbed as she relived the “terrifying” moment she was shot in her front garden by a hidden gunman.
She said: “First of all, I heard a sound and then I just had the most horrendous pain in my leg and hip.
“I couldn’t use my right leg at all but I managed to get inside and drag myself across the floor to where the phone was to dial 999.
“I was absolutely terrified, I had never been so terrified in all my life.
"I was really, really scared that whoever had done this was going to come back in and I couldn’t get back to the door to lock the door.”
During the trial one of Louise’s ex-husbands, Philip Gorringe, admitted he had heard of her being referred to as ‘Leg-Over Leggatt’ in hunting circles.
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