Police were today hunting a British husband accused of shooting dead his Thai wife and going on the run.

Anthony James Condron, 56, from Witham, Essex, allegedly murdered Pattanee Urapanom, 43, with a 9mm handgun at their hotel resort before fleeing the scene.

Shocked officers found her body at the at the Janpanom Farm Stay in Maha Sarakham, Thailand, this morning at 11am.

Her corpse was reportedly lying face up on a motorcycle. She was moved onto the ground for CPR to be performed but was pronounced dead at the scene.

Pattanee was wearing a white top and trousers and had a gunshot wound to the head, with the bullet entering her left temple and exiting the right side.

Officers from the Don Wan district station believe that Condron shot his wife while she mounted the vehicle to ride away.

Police checkpoints were placed around the area in a desperate bid to catch Condron.

Locals said the suspect had lived in Thailand for more than 10 years but allegedly had a history of drugs and violence.

Police Major General Paladech Petwango said: 'The victim was a well-loved member of the community due to her friendly nature and volunteering work with schools and charities.

'Her friends and family are in shock. They are overcome with grief and cannot understand how this happened.

‘Based on the tracked route, we found that the suspect fled the scene and travelled to Khon Kaen province and abandoned his white Isuzu vehicle.

‘We coordinated with the Immigration Bureau, the regional Investigation Division, Maha Sarakham Provincial Police, and several agencies to assist in the manhunt.

‘Whether anyone assisted him in fleeing remains under investigation.'

Police questioned neighbors who claimed they had heard the Brit shouting at his wife before the gunshots were fired.

The officer added: 'The neighbors did not understand what the argument was about because the couple were speaking in English.

‘They said that the couple had argued frequently prior to the incident. The husband has a history of violence.

‘The man had lived with his wife for several years, but they did not have any children.

‘The wife ran a homestay named Janpanom Farm Stay, while the foreign man was retired and unemployed.

‘The case has drawn strong public attention, and the suspect also carried a firearm, which posed a danger to the public, so we had to urgently find him.

‘The inquiry officer has requested an arrest warrant from the court on a charge of intentional homicide.'