LONDON (AFP) — The first of two charred bodies found in the burnt-out mansion of a debt-laden businessman listed as missing has been identified as that of his wife, police said Sunday.
Post-mortem tests revealed that Jill Foster, 49, had sustained a gunshot wound to the head.
"We are certain that one of the bodies is that of Jill Foster and the other is believed to be that of a man," said Superintendent Gary Higgins of West Mercia Constabulary.
There has been no confirmed trace of Christopher Foster, 50, his wife or their 15-year-old daughter Kirstie since a fire was started deliberately late Tuesday at Osbaston House, a large country estate in Shropshire.
Further tests are needed to try and establish the cause of death for the second body, Higgins added.
A rifle belonging to Foster was found near to the bodies.
Higgins said further tests were needed before it could be established whether the rifle was the murder weapon.
The bodies were discovered inside the remains of the property late Friday but police said the examination of the home is expected to take several days -- possibly even weeks -- due to the size of the site and the amount of debris inside.
Flames destroyed a stable block and a garage containing several luxury cars as well as part of the main residence.
Three horses and three dogs also died in total, with the body of one of the dogs found next to the human pair.
Police have confirmed that a horse box had been used to block the entrance to the grounds of the house.
Foster made his fortune developing insulation technology for oil rigs, but earlier this year a judge ruling on a debt case said the businessman was "bereft of the basic instincts of commercial morality."
Court documents show that Foster's company, Ulva Ltd, which had gone into liquidation, faced legal action from one of its suppliers for thousands of pounds, and also owed about 800,000 pounds.
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