A MAN committed suicide in a US courthouse just seconds after a jury convicted him of killing his wife, according to media reports.

The dramatic incident took place at the courthouse in Christiansburg, Virginia, where Mark Ward Faville was on trial for suffocating his wife Anne 15 years ago.

The 72-year-old had just been convicted of voluntary manslaughter and the judge had called for a short recess prior to sentencing.

Faville had been led out of the courtroom into a holding room when a commotion was heard, according to the Roanoke Times.

The paper said that a police sheriff was heard yelling “drop it, drop it!” and the entire fourth floor of the courthouse was evacuated.

It was not immediately clear how the defendant died but Christiansburg town spokeswoman Becky Wilburn said the cause of death was “self-inflicted”.

Several sources told the paper that a gun was not involved and it is known that court bailiffs, who escort defendants in court, do not carry guns for fear they could be grabbed from them.

During the week-long trial Faville’s two daughters testified against him, remarking on his strange behaviour in the time leading up to their mother’s death. They said he had grown suspicious of her and had taken to following her when she went out on errands.

The jurors heard how an initial autopsy concluded that Anne Faville died from choking on a piece of chicken. However, a second autopsy done 12 years later at the request of police ruled that Anne Faville had been deliberately suffocated.

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