The bodies of a couple who went missing while travelling have been found in a shallow grave in Texas.

James Butler, 48 and Michelle Butler, 46, from New Hampshire, were reported missing along with their truck and caravan in October.

They had been travelling around America since June 2018 but were last heard from on 16 October.

On Friday, investigators in Kleberg County confirmed two bodies found one on top of the other in a grave at a south Texas beach were the couple.

Their deaths are being treated as murder.


Image: The Butlers bodies were found on Monday

A statement from the sheriff's office read: "At present law enforcement officers are working on the investigation and are working on identification of persons of interest and attempting to find the whereabouts of the victims' truck and RV trailer."

The woman's body was found in the shallow grave on Padre Island, near Corpus Christi on Sunday.

Chief Deputy Jaime Garza said the man's body was found underneath on Monday.

Police believe the Butlers visited Padre Island.

They had most recently worked as gate guards for oil rigs in Texas, checking vehicles in and out, according to his sister, Deborah van Loon, of Rumney, New Hampshire.

She said: "We all loved what they were doing and they loved sharing it with us."

She said her brother was an "all-around really wonderful man".

Mr Butler retired from the Navy in 2010 and "loved to joke about everything", she said.

He had returned to the family home in Rumney when his mother was ill and met Michelle, whom he married in 2015.

Ms van Loon said they were probably going to a part-time job in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and due to arrive in November. They were going to be selling Christmas trees.

The Butlers van was parked near Beach Market 263 on Padre Island on 15 October, according to the Sheriff's office.