The newspaper editor who faces a year in prison for publishing photographs of Michaela McAreavey’s body collapsed due to “hysteria” before his case could be brought before the courts yesterday.

Detectives in Mauritius are tonight questioning the boss of a newspaper at a centre of the Michaela McAreavey photographs controversy.

The clock showed it was nearing 25 minutes since anyone else had spoken.

Chief Inspector Luciano Gerard, who led the investigation into the murder of Michaela McAreavey, faced almost three hours of intensive cross examination on whether he and his officers tortured one of the men accused.