Every third day, in our #EveryThreeDays campaign, I write about a woman killed by a man. Previously in this campaign, which started on May 2nd 2021, I have remembered 119 women, the last being Marian Smith.
The Mail Online reported on 17th April 2015:
Local prosecutors say that the mutilated body of a missing elderly British woman has been found ‘in two different areas’ of a southern French region and a man charged with her murder.
Violet Price, 80, had been missing from her home in Moustier village since last week, after her son – a businessman who lives in the area – was unable to reach her by phone after she attended a dinner party.
A 32-year-old man has now been arrested and charged with murder after he told police where to find the body parts.
Mrs Price’s son, who lives in the same area, raised the alert on Saturday after he went to her house when she failed to respond on the phone. Police immediately started looking for the 80-year-old widow who lived alone, mobilising 70 officers, a helicopter and divers, and searching hospitals as well – to no avail.
A source close to the probe had said she was ‘neither depressive nor suicidal’, adding that there was no apparent reason for her disappearance. The Daily Telegraph reported the 32-year-old man has now been arrested and charged with two counts of murder, although prosecutor Pascal Prache could not give any information on a possible motive. The suspect told police where to find the body parts in two different areas of the southern region.
Mr Prache said: ‘Given the declarations of the suspect and observations on site, it appears to be the body of Violet Price,’ he said, adding that an autopsy would confirm this. He added the suspect had already been sentenced in 2005 to eight years in prison for manslaughter and the man and Mrs Price knew each other, though they were not close.
They were both present at a meal hosted by the in-laws of Mrs Price’s son Saturday, both left separately mid-afternoon, but for reasons as yet unknown, both found themselves at her home later in the day.
When officers visited Mrs Price’s house on Saturday they found the lights on, and two cups of coffee – one-half full. The source said Mrs Price did not own a mobile phone, but had plenty of friends and family in the Dordogne, and had been enjoying life. Mrs Price is a widow whose maiden name is Finnis. She moved to France from London three years ago so as to be closer to her son. She speaks very little French.
The Dordogne, east of Bordeaux, is hugely popular with British ex-pats and second homeowners, who move there for the beautiful countryside and relatively cheap property price.
Violet Price
#EveryThreeDays
