Police yesterday insisted Richmond is still a safe place to live following the discovery of a missing woman’s body on Wednesday.
A murder investigation was launched after the body of Laureline Garcia-Bertaux, 34, was discovered by police in a shallow grave in her back garden on Darell Road in Kew.
The PR assistant executive and fashion blogger was declared missing on Tuesday after failing to turn up to work at PR company Golin.
Forensic experts and detectives are investigating her home but the cause of death remains unconfirmed while a postmortem takes place.
Chief Superintendent Sally Benatar, leader of the South West Borough Command Unit, said: “This type of incident is rare in the borough, but local officers are in the area to provide support and reassurance.”
No arrests have been made.
The murder follows a stabbing in Kew Village in January that was described as an attempted car theft.
There has been a spate of murders across the nation with knife crime and police numbers dominating public discussion.
A Darell Road resident said she didn’t feel safe and described the crime rate as becoming unbearable.
The resident added: “We used to feel like we lived in a bubble, we don’t feel that anymore.”
Despite this, the crime is being treated as an isolated incident, a spokesperson for the Met police said: “We are not treating this as a crimewave in the area.
“Every offence is one too many, however, it is not an epidemic.”
Chief Superintendent Benatar added: “I would encourage any local residents with concerns about any criminal activity to speak to officers or contact their local policing team via 101.”
