She Built a Peaceful Life in an Idyllic Village, Only to Be Stabbed to Death — as Police Suspect Someone with a 'Grudge'

• Karen Carter was found with eight stab wounds outside her vacation rental home in France
• Investigators say the mother of four was having an affair with the retired businessman who found her body
• Her husband, in South Africa, learned about her killing through Facebook

A British entrepreneur living in a French village where she owned two holiday rental homes was found brutally stabbed last week.

Karen Carter, 65, was discovered slain in Dordogne, in southwestern France, on April 29, the BBC reported, citing the state prosecutor. 

A friend found her with eight stab wounds, including wounds to her groin and chest, next to her porch of her house in the village of Trémolat, according to a preliminary autopsy report and a statement from prosecutor Sylvie Martins-Guedes cited by The Connexion and The Times, respectively.

Martins-Guedes said the investigation is focusing on “people likely to have had a grudge” against Karen or the man with whom she was having an affair, who ultimately found her body, per The Times.

During the investigation, police detained a 69-year-old neighbor but the woman was released, The Times, The Connexion and The Telegraph reported.

The man who found Karen’s body was identified in The Times and The Connexion reports as a 74-year-old businessman. He was briefly detained but released without charges.

Information about the victim’s reported affair shocked her husband, who lives in South Africa, according to The Times.

He said he learned about Karen’s murder from a relative who saw the news on Facebook. “No one had got in touch with me at all to let me know what had happened,” he said, per the BBC.

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Since her arrival in the village of Trémolat more than a decade ago, Karen had become a beloved member of the community.

“She was the embodiment of kindness,” said a friend who played with Karen on a soccer team for women over the age of 50.

“She’s the one who would bring home the lost dog, or cat, or whatever. She’s that sort of person,” her husband said in the aftermath of her death, per the BBC. “Everyone liked her. That’s why I married her.”

No suspects have been arrested.