Mystery surrounds the deaths of a British man and his wife, the mother of a former Hollyoaks star, in a remote area of their home in rural France – with family raising concerns about how many unanswered questions remain.
Retired financial investigator Andrew Searle, 65, and Dawn, 56, who only married two years ago, were found last Thursday by a horrified friend who was worried he had not seen them out with their dogs.
Mrs Searle’s son is Scottish actor Callum Kerr, known for his role as PC George Kiss in the soap Hollyoaks between 2020 and 2021.
The couple’s bodies were discovered at their property in Les Pesquies, two hours north of Toulouse – with police now launching a murder inquiry.
Prosecutor Nicolas Rigot-Muller has said both had died a ‘violent death’.
Locals told of their dismay and bafflement at what might have led to the tragedy which has shocked the close-knit community.
Meanwhile, Mr Searle’s father Fred Searle, an 88-year-old former Army major from Littlehampton in West Sussex, has flown over to join the inquiries – saying: ‘We’ve got thousands of questions and very few answers.’
Here, looks at some of the key posers now being probed…
What were the causes of death?
French media have reported Mr Searle, a former counter-fraud specialist, was found inside hanging from a banister with a gag in his mouth, but local officials have refused to confirm this.
A local whose friend was a firefighter said: ‘He went in and he said it was a horrific scene – it really upset him.’
Odile Marian, a close friend of the couple who lives just five minutes away from the scene, told how Dawn had been found ‘in her pyjamas’ outside the house by a neighbour and had a ‘head injury’.
She added: ‘Her jewellery was scattered around her and the man who found them called police and they arrived and found Andrew inside.’
A specialist pathologist flew in by helicopter for the initial investigation and reportedly ruled out finding any gunshot and knife wounds.
Was it a murder-suicide or else ‘burglary gone wrong’?
Items of jewellery are reported to have been strewn around Mrs Searle’s body.
But any suggestions the killings came from a ‘burglary gone wrong’ have been dismissed by the town’s mayor Jean-Sébastien Orcibal.
He also said the deaths were ‘clearly a homicide’ and not a ‘family tragedy’, suggesting officials thought the pair did not take their own nor each others’ lives.
Mr Orcibal added: ‘These people were well integrated into the village.’
He told how Mr Searle had been part of the town’s festival committee, adding: ‘They regularly invited the whole neighbourhood to come and have an aperitif at their place and share a festive moment. They knew a lot of people.’
Mr Orcibal also said: ‘We do not really have burglaries in our town, and especially not violent burglaries.’
Did the couple have any known enemies in the local community?
Andrew and Dawn Searle appear to have been popular among those living in Les Pesquies, having retired to France in 2015.
Detectives have been conducting a neighbourhood survey but locals said the couple had no obvious enemies.
One neighbour, Dominique Loubière, said: ‘We knew them well. They had dogs and sometimes we went for walks with them.
‘They got along well with everyone. When we arrived, they introduced us to the neighbours. They were very nice.’
And Isabelle Palazy, a shopkeeper in nearby town Villefranche de Rouergue, said: ‘They were a lovely couple, always happy and chatting and they spoke reasonably good French.’
Could Andrew Searle’s crime investigator past be a factor?
There has been speculation the couple could have been murdered by ‘British criminals’ since Mr Searle previously worked as a counter-fraud specialist.
It is understood that Mr Searle spent at least 20 years working with the the police and Serious Fraud Office against organised crime groups involved in financial crimes such as money laundering.
An investigating source has said: ‘A criminal enquiry has been launched and the fear is that the couple were murdered.
‘They were very fit, and very popular locally, but there is a theory that they were being pursued by criminals from the United Kingdom.
‘This is currently the prioritised line of enquiry, because [the husband] was once involved in the fight against organised crime and terrorism.’
This included work in ‘sanctions screening’, which is the process of checking individuals and groups who might be barred from dealing in the UK because of their links with rogue nations, terrorist groups and drugs traffickers.
This would have brought Mr Searle to the notice of networks working across the globe, in countries such as Russia.
Mr Searle retired to France in 2015 from his professional life in Scotland, after working in the financial crime assurance arm of Barclay’s Bank in Edinburgh.
Before this, the Liverpool John Moores University graduate was at Standard Life, which is also based in the Scottish capital.
He maintained a LinkedIn account, in which he wrote: ‘Reponsible for the delivery of significant improvements in AFC [Anti-Financial Crime] capability, developing effective operating models within a Group structure.’
When and where were the couple last seen?
CCTV footage has shown how Mr Searle entered a tobacconist in the nearby town of Villefranche de Rouergue at just before 6pm on Wednesday evening as the shop was closing.
Appearing happy and relaxed, he is seen buying a chocolate bar and two 3 Euro Lottery tickets before thanking the shopkeeper and walking away to his car outside where wife Dawn was waiting.
Around his neck is a tracking device used to keep an eye on the couple’s two hunting dogs and which were found at the scene and taken away for DNA testing by police following what has been described as their ‘violent deaths’.
Isabelle Palazy, 58, who served Mr Searle said: ‘I just couldn’t believe it when I heard the news.
‘He and Dawn were 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.’
On the CCTV, Mr Searle can be seen entering the shop at 5.51pm, just as a woman with a baby was about to leave.
He is seen waiting patiently behind another man before picking up the chocolate placing it on the counter and asking for two lottery tickets.
He pays with a card before leaving two minutes later at 5.53pm, and he and his wife were found the next day at just before 12.30pm.
What might Mr Searle have been arguing about in a phone call that was witnessed?
A neighbour who lives close to the house in Les Pesquies, two hours north of Toulouse, described how she saw the couple the day before they died.
They said: ‘The whole village is shocked by what happened. No one can believe it.
‘They were such a friendly couple and had a barbecue every year at the end of the summer and everyone was invited.
‘I saw them the day before they were found – they were walking the dogs and Andrew was on the phone.
‘He was very agitated, and he was arguing violently in English, he just waved at me and then carried on. I don’t know – maybe it’s relevant, but I can’t see burglary as a motive.’
Close friend Odile Marian described how Mr Searle had also been irate just hours before he died after ‘finding the door of his garage open’.
She said the idea of a ‘family drama’ was out of the question, as they had been ‘planning events and dog walks’ for the coming weeks with her.
She added: ‘I know that someone had opened the door of his garage was opened, he was trying to find out who it was, maybe it was him – I don’t know, maybe it’s connected?
‘I just know he was very angry and irate that it was open, but it may have been him who left it open. We just don’t know.’
What happens next?
Family members are expected to travel to the village in the next few days as police and prosecutors continue their investigation into the shocking double deaths – with prosecutors and police ‘keeping an open mind’.
Dawn’s son Callum – who lives in Nashville, Tennessee – posted a tribute on his Instagram, while also asking for the family’s privacy to be respected during this ‘difficult time’.
The 30-year-old, who is best known for his role as PC George Kiss in Channel 4’s Hollyoaks, shared a statement saying he was ‘grieving’ over the tragic loss of his mother and her partner.
He wrote: ‘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. Thank you for your understanding.’
A Foreign Office spokesperson said: ‘We are supporting the family of a couple who died in France and are liaising with the local authorities.’