Disgraced politician John Edwards is said to be deeply depressed - to the point of being suicidal - over the prospect of a criminal trial that could end with him being jailed if found guilty. The 57-year-old former Presidential candidate reportedly told a close friend: 'I won't go to jail. I'd kill myself first!' He has lost 20lb in the last year and is a 'broken spirit,' reports the National Enquirer.

According to the Enquirer, a close source said: 'I think John is suicidal. He knows that if he's indicted, prosecutors will try to get him to serve jail time and make an example of him. 'He's absoluetly despondent over the fear of prison. 'Over the last year, he's lost about 20lb and friends are concerned that he's escaping reality with booze.

'In early March, his legal team told him there was a strong chance he could be indicted, and John completely lost it. 'He cried his eyes out and said, "I won't go to jail. I'd kill myself first!"' The Enquirer first broke the story of Edwards's affair with blonde divorcee Rielle Hunter

A series of exclusives charted his sordid double life and his efforts to cover up the birth of his love child, daughter Frances Quinn, who is now three. The former North Carolina senator has been under federal grand jury investigation since April 2009 for alleged payments to take care of Miss Hunter in violation of campaign rules.

Probes have been carried out by both the IRS and the FBI. Complicating matters for Mr Edwards is the actions of Andrew Young, the former aide who helped cover up the affair by claiming he was Frances Quinn's father. Mr Young, who later admitted he lied to protect Mr Edwards, wrote a book about his role in the cover-up.