Cameron Neil Cook, 44, had hired private investigators who confirmed on the day of the attack that his wife was having an affair.

Later that night he pinned her to a bed in their Cheltenham home and bound her hands and mouth with tape. He punched her to the face, called her a whore, and threatened her with a knife.

Cook then chained his wife to the rear passenger seat of his car and drove to Mordialloc pier. Before driving at high speed into the water he said: "I'm sorry, Sonia, but I'm taking you with me. I am not going to let someone like you raise my son."

Sentencing Cook this morning, Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth described his attack on his wife, spanning some four hours on September 7, 2007, as "cowardly, violent and unprovoked".

"Having restrained and shackled your already-injured wife, in order to prevent her escaping or calling for help, you attempted to drown her, in what must have been a terrifying ordeal for her," she said.

"Your actions seem to have been motivated by an inability or unwillingness to accept that the marriage was over, and jealousy because she had found a new partner.

"Your conduct was a completely inappropriate response to the breakdown of your marriage."

Cook pleaded guilty to three charges including attempted murder over the attack. Justice Hollingworth ordered him to serve a minimum of 12 years before being eligible for parole.

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