French police are investigating the unexplained deaths of a retired British couple in southwest France – as vital clues begin to emerge.
Andrew Searle, 62 and his 56-year-old wife, Dawn, was found on Thursday.
They were discovered at around 12:20pm at their home in the quiet southern French hamlet of Les Pesquiès, south of Villefrance-de-Rouergue.
A post-mortem is set to be carried out on Monday to determine the exact cause of death.
Here’s everything we know about the couple and the investigation so far:
Who were Andrew and Dawn Searle?
Andrew Searle was a former fraud investigator and detectives are reportedly looking into whether gangsters with a “score to settle” may have been behind the killings.
The couple had previously lived in Musselburgh, near Edinburgh before moving to France around 10 years ago.
Mr Searle is originally from Sussex, England, while Dawn Searle, a project manager, grew up in Eyemouth in the Scottish Borders. Mrs Searle is the mother of actor and country musician Callum Kerr.
According to his LinkedIn page, Mr Searle had worked in financial crime prevention, including for private companies, the Serious Fraud Office and police.
His career saw him clamping down on global syndicates involved in money laundering among other crimes. It included investigating individuals and groups who may have been barred from dealing in the UK due to links with terrorists and rogue nations – including Russia.
Mr Searle took an early retirement in 2015, after which he is believed to have run into financial troubles when his rental business was forced into liquidation in 2023.
The 65-year-old was last seen in CCTV footage which shows him at a tobacconist in Villefrance-de-Rouergue.
What have French officials said about the deaths?
The mayor of Villefrance-de-Rouergue, Jean-Sébastien Orcibal, told French television that the deaths were “clearly a homicide”.
He told the BBC that the cause of death was still unclear and he ruled out speculation that the couple had been killed in a burglary gone wrong. Mr Orcibal also said that he believes that Mr and Ms Searle’s deaths were not a “family tragedy”, with a domestic dispute also among the possible theories for the deaths.
He added: “These people were well integrated into the village. [Mr Searle] was part of the festival committee a few years ago.
According to local media reports, Mrs Searle was found outside the property with a serious head injury and jewellery strewn around her.
A neighbour reportedly found her and called the emergency services. When police arrived, they searched the house and found Mr Searle reportedly found dead hanging inside.
Police have said that no theories are being excluded as motives for the deaths.
The public prosecutor Nicolas Rigot-Muller has said that both “died violent deaths”, but added: “I cannot establish that either was a homicide. All hypotheses remain open.”
What clues are police investigating?
Investigators are now looking into the late couple’s mobile phones. The phone belonging to Mr Searle was described as “particularly helpful” by one detective, who referred to a “mine of information and recent calls” which are providing “vital clues”.
Neighbours recall seeing Mr Searle appear agitated as he made phone calls in the days before he died. “He looked very worried. He said ‘I can’t speak with you, I’m on the phone’ and he walked on immediately,” 63-year-old Antoine Da Silva said.
Another neighbour recalled seeing Mr Searle looking “very agitated” while he was “arguing violently in English” on the phone on the day before they were found.
Authorities also reportedly believe Mr Searle’s career as a counter-fraud specialist may be linked to his death. No official theories have yet been publicised.
What have the locals said?
Mr and Mrs Searle were well-liked in the local area, with one neighbour Dominique telling French press: “We knew them, we walked our dogs together. They were very much appreciated locally.
“When they arrived they made contact with the neighbours and in September, they would often have a meal with everyone at their house.”
She added that the pair were “such a friendly couple” who “had a barbecue every year at the end of summer and everyone was invited”.
A friend of the Searles, Odile Marian, was also reported as saying that Mr Searle had been recently angry about finding the door of his garage open.
She said: “I know that someone had opened the door of his garage. He was trying to find out who it was… I don’t know maybe it’s connected?”
When were the couple last seen?
Mr Searle was pictured entering a tobacconist in the nearby town of Villefrance de Rouergue on the Wednesday evening before his death.
CCTV images obtained by Mail Online show Mr Searle entering the shop at just before 6pm as the shop was closing. He is seen buying a chocolate bar and two 3 euro lottery tickets. He then thanked the shopkeeper and walked back to his car where his wife Dawn was reportedly waiting.
Isabelle Palazy, who served Mr Searle, told Mail Online: “I just couldn’t believe it when I heard the news. He and Dawn are regular customers. He would come in every day and buy Fortuna Blue cigarettes.
“That day he came in just before I was closing and he seemed perfectly happy, he was relaxed and he chatted and bought some chocolate and two lottery tickets.
“Thinking that they were to die less than 24 hours later makes me go cold, I just can’t believe it. They were a lovely couple, always happy and chatting and they spoke reasonably good French.”
She added that he had been doing work on his house and that his favourite chocolate bars were KitKat and Kinder.
What have family members said?
Dawn Searle’s son Callum Kerr, an actor who has previously appeared in soap Hollyoaks, has said that the family are “grieving the tragic loss” of the couple.
A representative of Scottish-born actor Kerr said: “At this time, Callum Kerr and Amanda Kerr are grieving the loss of their mother, Dawn Searle (nee Smith, Kerr), while Tom Searle and Ella Searle are mourning the loss of their father, Andrew Searle.
“We kindly request that their privacy be respected during this difficult period.
“We will provide updates as appropriate.”
Mr Searle’s father Fred Searle, 88, who flew to France following the tragic news, told The Sunday Times: “We’ve got thousands of questions and very few answers.”
