A former detective was arrested yesterday for allegedly stabbing his hairdresser wife to death in her salon.
Natalie Esack, in her 30s, is thought to have left her husband of eight years Ivan Esack around a month ago, taking her pets with her as she moved out.
Staff at neighbouring businesses said they heard a terrifying scream ring out from her shop yesterday morning and saw two other hairdressers running into the street.
Dramatic tale: Natalie Esack, left, was found covered in stab wounds at her salon this morning, an hour before police arrested her estranged husband Ivan, right
Neighbours there said Mrs Esack had last been seen around a month ago, and had taken her pet cats and dog with her when she left.
Last night her 38-year-old husband was in custody and being questioned by detectives from Kent Police – the force he left two years ago to set himself up as a football agent.
A neighbour of the couple, who would not give her name, said: ‘I met them both at a Neighbourhood Watch street party last summer. She was quiet but he was more outgoing and talkative.
‘They seemed a pleasant couple. He told me he wanted to be more involved in politics and become a councillor.’
Charles Goodwin, 49, a mortgage broker who runs a business in an office three doors along from Esack Hair and Beauty, said he had waved to Mrs Esack earlier on the morning of her death – and had known the couple since arranging their joint mortgage eight years ago.
He said: ‘I heard a scream, a loud scream, this morning. I thought it was just kids messing about.
‘It was only when I saw three police cars and an ambulance pull up here that I knew something was wrong.
Shocking violence: Police launched an investigation after finding the seriously injured woman at the salon at 9.40am
He said Mrs Esack was a ‘really lovely bubbly character’. A former colleague working at Elegant Nails and Beauty, which is also thought to have been owned by Mr Esack, said staff were devastated.
She said: ‘You will not find a single person with a negative thing to say about her. She was the loveliest person. I have spent the whole morning in tears, we all have. It is just so tragic. We are all completely shocked by it. She was a local girl, we’re all just thinking about her family.’
Mrs Esack had several high-profile clients. They included Vic Reeves’ wife Nancy Sorrell, who lives with the comedian nearby in Charing, Kent, and Lesley Hogben, wife of television antique expert Michael Hogben.
Mrs Hogben said at the opening of Esack Hair and Beauty in 2008, in a local paper interview: ‘I have been a customer of Natalie’s in her previous salons so, no doubt, I will use this one too.’
Mrs Sorrell, who appeared in I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here in 2004, attended the opening of the salon in 2008.
Tragic: The hairdresser, who was in her 30s, died from her stab wounds after ambulances waited outside the salon throughout the morning
Mr Esack is the owner and director of IAE Football Ltd which, according to its website, ‘is an agency representing professional footballers and coaches throughout the United Kingdom’. Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha, who has been linked to a move to Premier League clubs including Manchester United, is pictured on IAE’s website – although Mr Esack is not the official agent for the player.
Popular shop: A man working near the hairdressers said he heard 'shouting and screaming' before police arrived on the busy street
It adds: ‘During my time as a police officer I encountered many different people from a whole range of interesting and diverse backgrounds.
‘However, my first love has always been football and it has been my ultimate dream to be involved in the football industry.
'In January 2010 I left the police force and embarked on the tough process of obtaining my players’ agent licence.
'I’m pleased to say that I was successful in passing the agents exam at the first attempt and obtained the necessary insurance and signed the code of conduct, which resulted in the Football Association issuing my licence.’
Mr Esack, originally from Middlesbrough, added: ‘Honesty and integrity is a vital ingredient in any working relationship and I can personally guarantee that I am a person that people can trust and confide in with confidentiality assured at all times.’
A Kent Police spokesman confirmed: ‘A 38-year-old Ashford man was arrested an hour later at an address in the town on suspicion of murder and is currently in custody.’
A post-mortem examination is due to take place today.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2137373/Stabbed-death-hair-salon-Former-detective-questioned-high-street-attack-wife-walked-him.html#ixzz1tbIJ5O00
