Woman ‘love rival’, 70, is charged over killing of Brit expat Karen Carter at her French Dordogne village home

A 70-year-old woman has been charged over the murder of British expat Karen Carter, who was found stabbed to death in her home in France a year ago.

Carter, 65, was attacked at the property in the Dordogne village of Trémolat on April 29 last year.

While the mother of four was on the verge of divorcing her husband Alan Carter, now 66, who lives in South Africa, she met Jean-François Guerrier, a 75-year-old retired business executive who also lives near her home in France.

The investigation into his murder was filled with mystery, but local media reported that a woman had been formally charged in Carter’s murder.

Périgueux prosecutor Jacques-Edouard Andrault told Sud Ouest: ‘On July 2, the investigating judge in Périgueux officially charged a woman with murder.

‘This 70-year-old woman, originally from Trémolat, was detained during preliminary investigation on 30 April 2025 before being released.’

The prosecutor added: ‘Since then, investigations carried out within the scope of the judicial investigation opened on 7 May 2025 have led to the investigating judge bringing charges against him.’

A local French newspaper, Dordogne Libre, reported that the woman arrested in this case was known to have ‘unreciprocated feelings’ for Guerrier and that she frequented the same cafe as Carter.

It was previously reported that he was detained for 48 hours after the incident and then released after ‘checks on his whereabouts’.

Carter died in front of the guesthouse he opened in the quiet village.

Investigators said he was stabbed eight times at the time, with one blow ‘perforating his aorta’.

Carter, 65, was attacked at the property in the Dordogne village of Trémolat (pictured) on April 29 last year.

The home of Karen Carter, a 65-year-old married mother of four, was found outside the property she runs in the village of Trémolat.

They added that the cause of death was ‘massive bleeding’.

The prosecutor said that the ‘judicial investigation continues’.

Her lover, Guerrier, had hosted a wine-tasting party on the day of Ms. Carter’s death and later followed her home in his car.

When he arrived, he found her lying in a pool of blood before she was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency officials.

Mr. Guerrier said he was initially concerned that his girlfriend had not called him when he arrived at her home, which was just 10 minutes away from his.

Leaked interview notes revealed he later told police he ‘came to spend the night at Karen’s’.

Mrs Carter was said to divide her time between France and South Africa. She and her husband owned their property, Les Chouettes, for 15 years.

The farmhouse and barn sleeps 16 people in total and is a popular vacation rental. The couple owned two other properties near Trémolat.

The couple had four adult children, two daughters and two sons, who lived in the UK, America, Australia and South Africa.

On the day of her death, Carter was training with a football team consisting of women aged 50 to 70.

Later that evening, he attended a wine tasting party at Cafe Village, a bar that serves as a community hub and where he occasionally volunteers.

Two days before the murder, on her 65th birthday, Karen Carter (pictured) posed for what is believed to be her last photo while out for lunch with friends.

The 65-year-old man was attacked at the property in the Dordogne village of Trémolat (pictured) on April 29 last year.

Before leaving, Guerrier asked him to call her when he got home so she knew he was safe.

However, when no such search was made, he went to Carter’s home and found her body.

Despite all the intervention of the medical teams, he died at the scene due to heavy blood loss.