She is suspected of his murder and is being held in custody while French police launched a formal investigation into Mr Rickard's death. The British father disappeared in 2001 shortly after moving to France with his partner and their two children. Mary Rickard, his daughter from a previous relationship who had stayed in the UK, had been searching for her father ever since. Although an investigation was opened at the time of Mr Rickard's disappearance, authorities failed to make any progress for several years. Daughter Mary reacted to the news with a social media post, writing: 'Justice will be served!!!'