British husband 'likely killed ex-pat wife in France during staged home burglary gone wrong,’ prosecutors say
24 February 2025, 08:37
A British man found dead alongside his wife at their home in rural France likely killed her during a botched staged burglary, police believe.
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The bodies of Andrew Searle and his wife Dawn were found in the hamlet of Les Pesquies, near Toulouse. Mrs Searle was found on February 6, lying dead in their garden with jewellery scattered around her.
Mr Searle was found dead inside the house.
Police initially believed that Mrs Searle had tried to run away from an attacker and was beaten to death.
However an investigator has now disputed this theory, saying neighbours would have heard screams if this was true. “What is very likely is that the victim was killed inside the house, with doors and windows shut on a winter's night, and then her body dumped in the garden,” an investigator told The Sunday Post.
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They said the deaths were likely a “staged burglary gone wrong.”
Nicolas Rigot-Muller, the Rodez prosecutor leading the investigation, said it was likely "a marital crime followed by a suicide".
He said that if the couple had been attacked by a stranger, they would have probably shouted, alerting their neighbours.
He claimed that Mr Searle may have hoped he could explain the crime to the police by organising a staged burglary before changing his mind and taking his own life.
No arrests have been made in connection with the couple's deaths.
