A MAN who killed his wife before dismembering her with a chainsaw in the bath has been jailed for life.

Unemployed Nicky Ward, 29, from Laindon, told a jury yesterday his wife, Emma Ward, 22, had “died at his hands”. Her family now want to know where he hid her body. Former Laindon High School pupil Ward said she died as a result of an accident, claiming he had no memory of what happened or of cutting up her body.

Norwich Crown Court found Ward guilty of murder and he was jailed for life with a minimum tariff of 22 years.

A statement from Mrs Ward’s family said: “We cannot begin to imagine the pain and terror Emma must have felt.

“It is so unbearable to think about.

“We have not been able to grieve for Emma because we do not know where she is.

“All we want is to be given the opportunity to say our final goodbyes and let her rest in peace.

“If Nick Ward has any remorse he must do the decent thing and tell us where he has put our daughter.”

During a two-week trial the court heard Ward attacked his wife at their home in Rockland St Peter, Norfolk.

Forensic investigations revealed the pretty blonde waitress was killed in the bedroom before being dragged to the bathroom.

Ward then used a hired chainsaw to dismember his wife’s body.

Judge Peter Jacobs said the amount of blood found suggested Ward had attacked his wife with a “sharp instrument”.

He told the court: “What happened after that was truly dreadful. You embarked upon a cynical and cruel effort to cover your tracks.”

Court heard Ward cleaned the carpets at the house and repainted it, but didn’t realise blood had seeped through to the floorboards, leaving vital forensic clues.

Traces of Mrs Ward’s skin, muscle and bone were also later found on the chainsaw, and blood-smeared scratches, made by the saw, were also found in the bath.

Mrs Ward went missing in April 2010, and police launched a probe after her family raised the alarm six weeks later.

Officers visited the couple’s home and found rubbish bags in the garden containing Mrs Ward’s passport, birth certificate and driving licence.

Ward, who was preparing to move back to his mum’s Laindon home at the time of his wife’s disappearance, maintained she left him a note claiming she was leaving him for another man.

No trace of the note or Mrs Ward’s body has ever been found.

Ward was arrested on suspicion of murder in Laindon in June last year.

Following the verdict and sentencing Emma’s family, paying tribute to her, described her as a “fantastic sister and truly loved daughter”.