Hans Kristian Rausing pleads guilty to preventing wife Eva's burial

Eva Rausing, 48, whose death was believed to have been drug-related, lay in a state of decomposition for around 2 months in the couple's Belgravia mansion in London.

A court heard that the reclusive son of the Swedish TetraPak businessman Hans Rausing had covered up the body of his wife with coats and disguised the smell with deodorising powder.

"I know it sounds selfish but I just didn't want her to leave," Rausing told a psychiatrist, whose statement was read out in court.

Rausing had told police after his arrest "I did not supply her with drugs. I have been very traumatised since her death...I tried to carry on as if her death had not happened and batted away any inquiries about her."

The couple had a long history of drug addiction and met at a drug rehabilitation clinic.

Rausing, whose family fortune is estimated to be around £4 billion, will be sentenced on Wednesday.

Images: Getty