Woman, 70, charged over murder of British woman Karen Carter in Dordogne
Mrs Carter was stabbed eight times outside her home in 2025
A 70-year-old woman has been charged over the murder of British woman Karen Carter, who was stabbed to death outside her home in Trémolat (Dordogne) in April 2025.
The Périgueux prosecutor's office has confirmed today (July 22) that a local woman, whose name has not been released, was placed under investigation for assassinat – a charge implying premeditation – on July 2. She has been placed under judicial supervision while the investigation continues.
Mrs Carter, 65, who grew up in South Africa with British parents and had four children, was found lying grievously wounded outside her home in Trémolat on April 29, 2025, having been stabbed eight times.
She had spent the evening at a wine tasting hosted by her new partner, and was attacked minutes after returning home, stepping out of her car to take her newly adopted puppy inside when she was stabbed.
As The Connexion reported at the time, her partner discovered her body and alerted emergency services. He was placed in custody in the hours that followed, along with another woman reportedly involved in a personal dispute involving Mrs Carter and both were released without charge. Investigators also took DNA samples from several dozen people, including local residents, none of which matched material recovered at the scene.
The case appeared to stall for months and one year after the murder, no new leads had been made public and no charges had been brought forward, with authorities citing France's rules on judicial secrecy which restrict what investigators can disclose while a case is ongoing. At that stage, lines of enquiry reportedly included her partner, her estranged husband in South Africa, and a woman said to have been passed over in favour of Mrs Carter by her new partner.
According to information gathered since, the newly-charged woman is understood to have had feelings for Mrs Carter's partner, pointing to a possible motive rooted in jealousy or romantic rivalry. She had already been questioned and released in the days after the killing.
Périgueux prosecutor Jacques-Édouard Andrault said the investigation remains open, and it is not yet clear when a trial might take place.
