Residents reportedly saw a white car leaving the area at speed between 3pm and 4pm. The car park in the Combe d’Ire forest, which is four miles from the nearest house, is often used by walkers who leave their cars there before setting off. Earlier this summer the Foreign Office warned British tourists driving on the Continent that they were regarded as “easy targets” by gangs which staged accidents to make them stop before robbing them. A French police officer said: “It’s the time of year, the thieves go for tourists who they see as rich.”