A MILLIONAIRE car dealer found guilty of murdering his estranged wife faces an anxious wait to see if appeal court judges clear him of the crime.

Ian Workman was jailed for life at in December, 2011, after being convicted over the fatal stabbing of Sue Workman — who died at their former matrimonial home.

The 60-year-old, of Vale Street, Turton, denied murder, claiming Mrs Workman came at him with a knife and was fatally wounded in a struggle.

At the end of a two-day hearing at London's Criminal Appeal Court, during which a panel of three senior judges heard “fresh evidence” which Mr Workman's lawyers say render his conviction unsafe, Lord Justice Davis said the court's judgment will be given at a later date.

Mrs Workman died from a single stab wound in her heart at the couple's farmhouse in Plantation Road, Edgworth, on April 11, 2011.

The couple divorced in December, 2010 and there was an “acrimonious” dispute between the pair.

During his trial, an expert for the prosecution said it was “unlikely” Mrs Workman could have stabbed herself.

But his appeal centres on fresh evidence from a biomechanics expert, who concluded it was “highly possible” the victim could have stabbed herself if her arm was suddenly released during a struggle, because of the effect of “auto recoil”.

The court’s decision on Workman’s appeal will be given at an unspecified later date.