Missing estate agent found dead

The missing US estate agent Beverly Carter has been found dead, buried in a shallow grave in Arkansas.

The search for Mrs Carter had been going on since last Thursday when she did not return home from an appointment to show a home to a potential buyer.

On Monday police arrested Arron Lewis on suspicion of kidnapping Mrs Carter; it is expected that this charge will now be amended to murder.

Lewis is reported to have admitted abducting the realtor but he did not reveal her wherabouts. Police said they then received information leading them to the address where her body was found.

Mrs Carter's car was found abandoned but without her personal belongings having been removed.

Her family then received a series of text messages purporting to be from her, but appearing out of character.

The first was just one word: "Yes." The next said: "My phone's low. The battery's down, and I'll call you whenever I get signal." The final message read: "Oh, I'm out drinking with some friends" although Mrs Carter was not a drinker.

American agents have been urged by the National Association of Realtors to uphold the memory of Beverly Carter by keeping safe and watching out for each other.

In this country the Suzy Lamplugh Trust was set up after the disappearance of 25-year-old agent Suzy Lamplugh. She has been presumed murdered and was legally declared dead in 1993. To date her body has not been found.

The trust now campaigns for general personal safety, not solely for agents. It has recently called for rethinks on cutbacks on street lighting by local authorities, and on the potential dangers of illegal minicabs.