The head of security for Prince Charles' wife Camilla was today found dead after shooting himself at his home.

Police Sergeant Richard Fuller, 55, was married with three grown-up children and was a well-liked and apparently happy member of the force.

The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Charles were told of the death while they were on board the yacht Leander on a tour of the Caribbean.

A spokeswoman for Clarence House said: ''The Duchess of Cornwall was very saddened to hear of the death of Sergeant Richard Fuller.'' Sgt Fuller, who was a trained armed response officer with Wiltshire Police, was found dead at his home near Calne, yesterday morning.

He shot himself with his own gun, which is thought to have been a shotgun, rather than a force weapon.

Sgt Fuller lived with his wife Jill, 45, and their three children: Jennifer, 21, Daniel, 19, and Stephanie, 18, who were told of his death yesterday.

He was reportedly happy, without any obvious issues weighing him down, but was coming up to retirement.

He was in charge of security at Ray Mill House, Camilla's six-bedroom country home.

Camilla bought the property, set in 27 acres, after her divorce from Andrew Parker Bowles in 1996 for #850,000.

In June 2006, the home hosted the wedding reception venue of her daughter Laura Parker Bowles and husband Harry Lopes.

The Duchess, despite rarely staying there, insisted on beefing up security to a round-the-clock team of armed officers, led by Sgt Fuller, costing the taxpayer #2.6million.

Part of the increased protection was a guardhouse, which Sgt Fuller used to run, which has an office, lavatories and meeting rooms for police protecting Camilla around the clock.

Staff at the estate, including the Duchess, were yesterday upset and offered their sympathies to his family.

A source close to Camilla said: ''This is terrible news. She's deeply shocked and upset. The Duchess had a good working relationship with him.

''She is obviously upset for his wife and family.'' Sgt Fuller was a popular member of the force and colleagues said he would be greatly missed.

Assistant Chief Constable Andy Marsh said: ''I can confirm that an investigation is taking place into the sudden death of a Wiltshire police officer at an address near Calne.

''The officer was a highly regarded member of the force and will be sadly missed by his colleagues and friends in Wiltshire Police.

''Our thoughts go out to his family and friends at this time.'' Sgt Fuller had led an exemplary 29-year career and was Wiltshire Police's chief firearms instructor at its headquarters in Devizes.

In 1995 he received a Crown Court Commendation for the successful arrest of a man armed with a shotgun who was threatening a colleague.

Then, in 2001, he received a long service and good conduct medal.

He had only one blemish on his career - one charge of using unnecessary force to pin a radio ham to the floor during an arrest.

He was cleared in February 2006 but the court heard he pressed Gareth Evans' head to the floor with his boot during the arrest.

Sgt Fuller had struggled to control his temper, Chippenham magistrates heard.

He was reported to the Independent Police Complaints Commission but Sgt Fuller was not reprimanded.