France - Karen Carter, 65, stabbed to death, Tremolat, Dordogne, 29 April 2025

[ZaZara]

I think that is why that moment stood out to me and the author. KC may have startled but she also walks to the her front door, unlocks and opens it and then walks back to her car, in the direction of the perp, to get her dog and turns her back on them for a moment to do so. IMO, likely KC wouldn’t have made two trips to the car and thereby walk back in the direction of the perp a second time, or turned her back on them, if she wasn’t familiar with them or felt safe or comfortable around whoever this individual was. I think of this particularly because it was late at night, dark out and her friends, AC and sister-in law have commented KC was known to be precautious and would have shouted for help if someone hadn’t known or expected had approached or scared her. As a result, they theorized it is possible she knew the person who awaited her and may have even been talking to them without realizing she was any danger before the attack occurred.

It also brings into question why didn’t the perp attack her as she was walked towards the front door or immediately after she got out of the car?

JMO/MOO

There is no indication that KC saw the perp before she was attacked, nor that this would have been a familiar figure.
She arrived home, got out of the car and opened the front door. Went back to the car to fetch the dog and was attacked.

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

There is no indication that KC saw the perp before she was attacked, nor that this would have been a familiar figure.
She arrived home, got out of the car and opened the front door. Went back to the car to fetch the dog and was attacked.

Are you sharing your opinion or is this fact confirmed by LE? If so can you share the source, thank you?

MOP, but information available to the public and insights shared by her husband and friends also don’t rule out the possibility that she may have seen perp before the murder occurred and may have been familiar with them.

Also of course not ruling out or dismissing the other theory she was ambushed by a perp who was total stranger to her and whose presence she was not even aware of until the attack occurred.

Just sharing alternative theories and insights from the information and articles I read online

MOO/JMO

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

I am not sure she saw him. He was standing in the shadow of the trees.

It was reported that she was retrieving a dog from the car's back seat when she was attacked. IMO she could have been pinned against the car without a chance to escape.

Yeah, of course, I definitely don’t think these two scenarios and similars can be ruled out or overlooked either to help infer or theorize how the the assault and murder of Karen Carter unfolded that night

 

[ZaZara]

Are you sharing your opinion or is this fact confirmed by LE? If so can you share the source, thank you?

MOP, but information available to the public and insights shared by her husband and friends also don’t rule out the possibility that she may have seen perp before the murder occurred and may have been familiar with them.

Also of course not ruling out or dismissing the other theory she was ambushed by a perp who was total stranger to her and whose presence she was not even aware of until the attack occurred.

Just sharing alternative theories and insights from the information and articles I read online

MOO/JMO

BBM

If you read stuff online, you are supposed to add the link, preferably to a MSM source.

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

BBM

If you read stuff online, you are supposed to add the link, preferably to a MSM source.

I did.

They were under my original comment:

Thanks for the info! Since the perp was lying in wait for her to return home I did wonder who else were aware enough of her plans that evening in order to plan her murder. If she attended training before the wine tasting though it is possible that she could have shared that information with one or more of her teammates. Definitely not trying to point fingers or make assumptions but I wonder over the course of the investigation if LE had learned about any interpersonal issues between Karen and any of the other football team members? Did anyone hold a grudge or was dislike or animosity between them? Was it related to their trip to SA, was there a change in their relationship since their return or SA or were arguments heard or known between them?


Also according to an article on the Times, after she parked her car, Karen got out, unlocked her front door and seemingly walked back to get dog before perp brutally assaulted and murdered her. The article implies during the course of these movements, it is seems likely that KC recognized and conversed with her killer shortly before they brutally attacked her. Is it possible that the perp was someone Karen was familiar or friends with? JMO, but it does seem to imply she trusted this person or at least felt safe and comfortable enough to leave her front door unlocked and open, making a second trip back to her car, and thus walk back towards their direction, and turn her back to them as she attempted to picked up her dog. If she felt nervous or unsafe around them or it saw an unexpected stranger waiting for her as she pulled in her car, wouldn’t she have more likely parked, grabbed her dog and attempt to reach her front door in one go instead of going back and forth to her vehicle?

Sadly, it seems IMO that by leaving the front door open, Karen maybe jad expected them to follow her back into the cottage, but not because they were a threat coming after her but because they were a good friend, neighbor, acquaintance or guest whom she warmly welcomed before. Tragically, if true, the perp was unworthy of the trust Karen bestowed upon them and misused it to viciously take away her life and rob her from her loved ones.

I wonder if she was rushing the divorce because she was planning on buying a new house and wanted to be the sole owner, since she planned to retire in it, rather than it be property she would have to split or contend over in the divorce settlement, unlike the rentals? Maybe she planned to pay for the new home using the new French bank account as well, since it was only in her name and not shared with AC like her other possibly available bank accounts? Just a guess though

I can understand both perspectives for why people are and are not suspicious to AC. I guess too based on the article below, I can understand too that even though he admitted they were struggling to connect as since they were living countries apart, how the news about KC affair with JFG may have genuinely shocked him since the affair has only unfolded over the past few months, it appears he had spent the summer before in 2024 in Tremolet with Karen and thought things were going well and KC had answered they were just friends when he tried to talk to her about her relationship with JFG. I think too that after being married to someone for so long denial could have played a role, understandably.

I am definitely not saying I ruled in or out any theories regarding her spouse, it was just something else I considered.

Wife’s affair a betrayal, says husband of Dordogne murder victim

Alan Carter said that the investigation into the stabbing of his wife Karen ‘confirmed a relationship I did not want to believe’ and which she had denied

www.thetimes.com

Verifying Device

Murdered British mother seen dancing with lover months before killing

A British woman killed outside her gîte in the Dordogne was filmed dancing with her secret French lover months before her death.

www.yahoo.com

Brit expat murdered in France was 'buying a house and leaving husband'

Mother-of-four Karen Carter was stabbed to death last Tuesday outside a guesthouse she ran in the village with husband Alan, who had been at home in South Africa

www.dailymail.co.uk

Verifying Device

 

[ZaZara]

Also according to an article on the Times, after she parked her car, Karen got out, unlocked her front door and seemingly walked back to get dog before perp brutally assaulted and murdered her. The article implies during the course of these movements, it is seems likely that KC recognized and conversed with her killer shortly before they brutally attacked her.

Cannot find this statement nor the implication in the article you linked to (which is subscribers-only BTW).

Wife’s affair a betrayal, says husband of Dordogne murder victim

 

[Dotta]

Summary so far based on MSM reports

Main threads of the investigation:

Personal Motive:
The Bergerac prosecutor's office initially focused on the theory of "personal grudge" or "crime of passion."

Love triangle:
The connection between the victim, her partner JFG and another villager, M-LA, who was said to be jealous of their relationship, was investigated.

The "outsider" theory:
In November 2025, investigators announced a breakthrough
- DNA tests conducted on 15 villagers (including the mayor and neighbors)
gave negative results,
which turned suspicions to a perpetrator from outside Trémolat.

Paid murder:
Some witnesses and the media speculated about the possibility of a professional murder order,
but the police did not officially confirm this version.

*I asked AI for help.
Is anything missing?

 

[slowpoke]

SBM. It was 10pm. Karen just got home. A familiar figure suddenly appeared in front of her. Even if they were a close neighbor, I'd be startled by their presence. What are they doing in my driveway (not on the road passing by) at this hour? If it was a friend, why wouldn't they call first? Where did they park? For anyone else, there would be no good reason to be there.

I agree with your thinking on how Karen would feel in that scenario.

Another thought: There had been speculation on this thread due to JFG showing up so quickly to KC’s home.

Was it really that KC was supposed to let him know she was back home?
Or was it ann angreement between the two all along to have a late night visit at KC’s?

Let’s say the latter was true. The moment KC is met by a “familiar figure”, you’d think she would quickly send a text to JFG to hold back because ‘so-and-so” is here, since KC and JFG were trying to be discreet.

Just some thoughts, moo

 

[indicolite22]

Was it really that KC was supposed to let him know she was back home?
Or was it ann angreement between the two all along to have a late night visit at KC’s?

Let’s say the latter was true. The moment KC is met by a “familiar figure”, you’d think she would quickly send a text to JFG to hold back because ‘so-and-so” is here, since KC and JFG were trying to be discreet.

Just some thoughts, moo

SBM. In newer articles it was reported that JFG was meant to spend the night at Karen's. A neighbor told the media that he saw JFG visiting her at night on previous occasions. He added that he never saw other men. That neighbor was reportedly watching football on TV at the time of the attack and didn't hear anything.

 

[slowpoke]

Cannot find this statement nor the implication in the article you linked to (which is subscribers-only BTW).

Wife’s affair a betrayal, says husband of Dordogne murder victim

Found the info here, in The US Sun

“Investigators now believe Karen parked as usual on the gravel drive of her 250-year-old home in the Dordogne village of Trémolat, opened the front door, lit the house, and then returned to her Dacia Duster to get her dog, Haku.

She had just opened the rear passenger door when she was stabbed eight times with what police describe as “exceptional violence”.”

 

[Kemug]

I think any grace we lend to her ex partner in terms of him being considered a victim should also be extended to her current partner. In fact, probably more so actually.

We can’t be sure, but I don’t see it as him “tagging along” or him having a nerve, and making things awkward. I see him being a supportive and caring travelling companion, her partner in fact.

RSBM
But does that make sense? Weren't they trying to keep their affair secret? That is what I understood anyway.

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

Cannot find this statement nor the implication in the article you linked to (which is subscribers-only BTW).

Wife’s affair a betrayal, says husband of Dordogne murder victim

Verifying Device

 

[ZaZara]

Found the info here, in The US Sun

“Investigators now believe Karen parked as usual on the gravel drive of her 250-year-old home in the Dordogne village of Trémolat, opened the front door, lit the house, and then returned to her Dacia Duster to get her dog, Haku.

She had just opened the rear passenger door when she was stabbed eight times with what police describe as “exceptional violence”.”

That part yes. But not the following: The article implies during the course of these movements, it is seems likely that KC recognized and conversed with her killer shortly before they brutally attacked her.

That is the opinion of friends, not of LE. If something raises questions, that does not mean that it is - or seems - likely.
It may seem possible, but an unlikely possibility.

 

[Kemug]

SBM. It was 10pm. Karen just got home. A familiar figure suddenly appeared in front of her. Even if they were a close neighbor, I'd be startled by their presence. What are they doing in my driveway (not on the road passing by) at this hour? If it was a friend, why wouldn't they call first? Where did they park? For anyone else, there would be no good reason to be there.

It seems to me (at least sometimes!) that Karen did recognise the person waiting for her. Maybe she said something like "Come in for coffee, won't you? - just let me bring the dog in first". And then innocently turned her back. Maybe the assailant actually was a person she had been worried about, and she thought that they could talk about the problem over coffee. And she would never have dreamed that person was capable of savagely killing her. In fact, maybe that person explained their unexpected presence by saying something like "Hi, can we talk? It's time we sorted this out."

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

Thanks for the info! Since the perp was lying in wait for her to return home I did wonder who else were aware enough of her plans that evening in order to plan her murder. If she attended training before the wine tasting though it is possible that she could have shared that information with one or more of her teammates. Definitely not trying to point fingers or make assumptions but I wonder over the course of the investigation if LE had learned about any interpersonal issues between Karen and any of the other football team members? Did anyone hold a grudge or was dislike or animosity between them? Was it related to their trip to SA, was there a change in their relationship since their return or SA or were arguments heard or known between them?


Also according to an article on the Times, after she parked her car, Karen got out, unlocked her front door and seemingly walked back to get dog before perp brutally assaulted and murdered her. The article implies during the course of these movements, it is seems likely that KC recognized and conversed with her killer shortly before they brutally attacked her. Is it possible that the perp was someone Karen was familiar or friends with? JMO, but it does seem to imply she trusted this person or at least felt safe and comfortable enough to leave her front door unlocked and open, making a second trip back to her car, and thus walk back towards their direction, and turn her back to them as she attempted to picked up her dog. If she felt nervous or unsafe around them or it saw an unexpected stranger waiting for her as she pulled in her car, wouldn’t she have more likely parked, grabbed her dog and attempt to reach her front door in one go instead of going back and forth to her vehicle?

Sadly, it seems IMO that by leaving the front door open, Karen maybe jad expected them to follow her back into the cottage, but not because they were a threat coming after her but because they were a good friend, neighbor, acquaintance or guest whom she warmly welcomed before. Tragically, if true, the perp was unworthy of the trust Karen bestowed upon them and misused it to viciously take away her life and rob her from her loved ones.

I wonder if she was rushing the divorce because she was planning on buying a new house and wanted to be the sole owner, since she planned to retire in it, rather than it be property she would have to split or contend over in the divorce settlement, unlike the rentals? Maybe she planned to pay for the new home using the new French bank account as well, since it was only in her name and not shared with AC like her other possibly available bank accounts? Just a guess though

I can understand both perspectives for why people are and are not suspicious to AC. I guess too based on the article below, I can understand too that even though he admitted they were struggling to connect as since they were living countries apart, how the news about KC affair with JFG may have genuinely shocked him since the affair has only unfolded over the past few months, it appears he had spent the summer before in 2024 in Tremolet with Karen and thought things were going well and KC had answered they were just friends when he tried to talk to her about her relationship with JFG. I think too that after being married to someone for so long denial could have played a role, understandably.

I am definitely not saying I ruled in or out any theories regarding her spouse, it was just something else I considered.

Wife’s affair a betrayal, says husband of Dordogne murder victim

Alan Carter said that the investigation into the stabbing of his wife Karen ‘confirmed a relationship I did not want to believe’ and which she had denied

www.thetimes.com

Verifying Device

Murdered British mother seen dancing with lover months before killing

A British woman killed outside her gîte in the Dordogne was filmed dancing with her secret French lover months before her death.

www.yahoo.com

Brit expat murdered in France was 'buying a house and leaving husband'

Mother-of-four Karen Carter was stabbed to death last Tuesday outside a guesthouse she ran in the village with husband Alan, who had been at home in South Africa

www.dailymail.co.uk

Verifying Device

Brit expat murdered in France was 'buying a house and leaving husband'

Mother-of-four Karen Carter was stabbed to death last Tuesday outside a guesthouse she ran in the village with husband Alan, who had been at home in South Africa

www.dailymail.co.uk

Brit expat murdered in France was 'buying a house and leaving husband'

Mother-of-four Karen Carter was stabbed to death last Tuesday outside a guesthouse she ran in the village with husband Alan, who had been at home in South Africa

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[FromGermany1]

RSBM
But does that make sense? Weren't they trying to keep their affair secret? That is what I understood anyway.

I think to remember, that there were others also, who accompanied the football ladies. Perhaps that's, why it didn't attract much attention, that JFG was one of them? Possibly he was even a sponsor of this trip to SA? MOO

 

[HongKongPhooey]

RSBM
But does that make sense? Weren't they trying to keep their affair secret? That is what I understood anyway.

Whether they travelled as “friends” outwardly or not, and I have no idea but actually suspect not - hardly likely to bump into a neighbour, after all - we know they were in a relationship.

 

[indicolite22]

It seems to me (at least sometimes!) that Karen did recognise the person waiting for her. Maybe she said something like "Come in for coffee, won't you? - just let me bring the dog in first". And then innocently turned her back. Maybe the assailant actually was a person she had been worried about, and she thought that they could talk about the problem over coffee. And she would never have dreamed that person was capable of savagely killing her. In fact, maybe that person explained their unexpected presence by saying something like "Hi, can we talk? It's time we sorted this out."

Again, I'm trying to put myself in her shoes. If someone was just passing by on the street, it wouldn't be unusual to say hi, but she was expecting JFG to join her, so no invites that night, not even friends. Certainly not random villagers, or someone she had issues with. OTOH, to suddenly appear on her property, would indicate intent. What was so important at 10pm that couldn't wait? IMO, she didn't see the perp at all.

 

[FromGermany1]

Again, I'm trying to put myself in her shoes. If someone was just passing by on the street, it wouldn't be unusual to say hi, but she was expecting JFG to join her, so no invites that night, not even friends. Certainly not random villagers, or someone she had issues with. OTOH, to suddenly appear on her property, would indicate intent. What was so important at 10pm that couldn't wait? IMO, she didn't see the perp at all.

Why, oh why didn't Karen and JFG drive together, in 2 cars, but one after the other?? Or would then two people have been dead at the end?

 

[Dotta]

Why, oh why didn't Karen and JFG drive together, in 2 cars, but one after the other?? Or would then two people have been dead at the end?

This "keeping it discreet" didn't obviously work, did it?
Considering neighbour's reported gossip.

Coming together might have saved Karen's life - at least that night IMO.

It depends on the murderer's obsession to kill her.
There would have been other days/evenings/nights when Karen was alone, right?

But then,
there is possibility that it was a random attack.
Only on that particular night.

We simply don't know.

Leaving DNA at the crime scene seems to be amateurish IMO.
Also,
brutality of the attack might indicate some MH issues.
Or somebody under the influence of drugs?

JMO