‘Virgin River’ Star’s Mother and Stepfather Murdered in France: Tragic Details Emerge About Callum Kerr’s Family

The mother and stepfather of actor and country musician Callum Kerr have been found dead at their home in southwest France. According to BBC News, Andrew and Dawn Searle were discovered by a neighbor in a scene that was “clearly a homicide.”

Mr. Searle is originally from England, while Mrs. Searle grew up in Eymouth in the Scottish Borders. Both lived together in Musselburgh near Edinburgh before moving to France.

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The couple’s bodies were found at nearly 12:20 a.m. on Thursday after the neighbor checked on them when they missed a planned dog walk. Their cause of death was not confirmed, but Mayor Jean-Sébastien Orcibal did note that “no knife was found” and it didn’t seem like a “burglary gone wrong.”

Police have closed off the home, though no criminal case has been opened, and there is no preferred theory behind the deaths. According to the Mirror, Andrew and Dawn Searle’s deaths did raise plenty of concern due to the shocking nature of the crime scene’s discovery.

“The wife’s body was first discovered, completely naked, in front of the door of the house. Around the unfortunate woman, [jewelry] was found scattered, testifying to a great disorder. In the house, the husband’s body was discovered hanging with a gag stuck in his mouth.”

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A source reported to the Mirror that there is also a question of the Searle’s connection to crime figures in the U.K. before they left.

“A criminal enquiry has been launched and the fear is that the couple were murdered,” the source told the outlet. “They were very fit, and very popular locally, but there is a theory that they were being pursued by criminals. This is currently the prioritised line of enquiry, because Mr Searle was once involved in the fight against organised crime and terrorism.”