An American man was found guilty today of attempting to murder his British wife, who is allergic to latex, with a surgical glove.

Charles Henson, 39, put his gloved fingers inside Allison Phelps’s mouth during an attack at her home in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, after their marriage failed. He also tried to poison both her and her partner, Michael Phelps - whose surname she adopted - by turning on the gas hobs and oven at their home.

Henson, from Wisconsin, showed no emotion as he was found guilty of attempted murder and attempting to administer a poison or noxious substance.

Bristol Crown Court heard that Henson and Ms Phelps, 40, first met on the internet in a chat room devoted to fetishes including bondage and domination. They married in July 2005 after first meeting face-to-face in March when he came to the UK on holiday. The marriage failed, with Ms Phelps claiming her husband was abusive.

She said she that while she treated the fetish scene as a "fantasy" rather than a reality, to Henson it was a "way of life". The jury heard that Ms Phelps was a "slave" and Henson was the "master" in their relationship. Prior to meeting Ms Phelps, Henson lived with his mother and had amassed a large collection of swords, daggers and battleaxes.

After the failure of the marriage, Henson returned to the US in February this year as his visa had expired. But weeks later he came back to the UK and went to the house in Coalway, near Coleford, armed with two knives and wearing a latex glove. He was found after Ms Phelps was woken by one of her dogs barking and the smell of gas.

Ms Phelps, 40, described the moment, saying she "felt angry, scared and confused." She said Henson pulled her head back by the hair then "suddenly, quite violently" put his fingers into her mouth, telling her she had "four minutes to live".

Mr Phelps then lunged at him and Ms Phelps ran outside screaming for help while her partner subdued Henson.

During the struggle, Mr Phelps suffered stab wounds to the leg, requiring 35 stitches. Henson was also convicted of wounding him, but was cleared of the more serious charge of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm as well as a count of aggravated burglary.

Ms Phelps told the jury she suffered from a severe allergy to latex and had been prescribed an adrenaline injection, steroid tablets and an inhaler to combat the effects. After the attack by Henson she said she suffered "sore lips and ulcerations" in her mouth.

The bizarre events in the early hours of March 4 were the final acts in a relationship that had been unconventional from the start. The pair struck up their relationship in October 2004 after Ms Phelps became curious and started looking at fetish websites. Under the alias Salacious Squirrel, she met Henson, who had adopted the username Knigh 765, and had been interested in the BDSM (bondage, domination, submission and masochism) scene since he was 19.

Henson bought Ms Phelps a collar to mark her out as his slave, and she signed up on an online slave register so that other computer users could see she "belonged" to him. He drew up a contract setting out what behaviour was expected of her and what punishments were allowed - a document Ms Phelps denied signing.

When Henson came to visit Ms Phelps in the UK in March 2005, the couple visited a fetish bazaar in Birmingham, where they bought a heavy-duty "flogger" - a kind of whip used for corporal punishment.

Their whirlwind romance continued, and they married later that summer . But the relationship was short lived, breaking down amongst accusations of violence, with Ms Phelps telling the jury that Henson had whipped her until she bled.

Detective constable Phil Boyes, of Gloucestershire Police, said: "It’s been very traumatic for the victims, but from my point of view it has been a very interesting case to investigate.

"It was definitely an eye-opener looking into the background of the case. It is certainly something I have never investigated before, and it has broadened my horizons."

The detective added: "A latex glove is an unusual weapon to use. It is certainly one we are not used to dealing with."

Sentence was adjourned for six weeks for psychiatric reports to be prepared.

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