British woman in her 20s 'found dead behind church during family holiday to France' had been seen 'arguing with her partner'
The deceased – who has not yet been named – was on holiday in Barfleur, 17 miles east of the Normandy port of Cherbourg.
Her lifeless body was found in a rock pool next to the coastal St Nicholas's Church by a dog walker at around 9am on Friday morning.
Sources close to the investigation told Ouest France that the woman is believed to have drowned. The church overlooks the Channel.
Following the opening of a criminal investigation, her partner was questioned by police, said an investigating source.
Others in the couple's party from the UK have also been interviewed, following claims that she was likely to have drowned after falling into the sea.
The source continued: 'They were all on holiday in Barfleur, staying in a rented cottage by the port.
'It is believed the English woman had been arguing with her partner following a night out on Thursday.
'She may have gone out to get some air, before her drowned body was found in a rock pool hours later.'
It is not known if anybody had raised the alarm about the woman's initial disappearance.
Sea conditions were relatively calm on Thursday night, overnight to Friday, and the temperature was warm.
The area behind the church was on Friday blocked off by police teams, including forensics experts.
A drone could also be seen flying across the potential crime scene, as detectives made house-to-house enquiries.
Local prosecutors working with judicial police have opened a criminal investigation, and no theory for the death has yet been ruled out.
An autopsy was due to be carried out over the weekend, to establish the precise cause of death.
Barfleur, which has a history stretching back to before the Norman Conquest of 1066, is a member of The Most Beautiful Villages of France association.
It is a small fishing village of some 700 residents in the north of France, largely untouched by tourism and rated one of the country's most attractive communes.
The area regularly tops polls for being one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country.
Many of those arriving for holidays are from Britain, because of Barfleur's position on the English Channel, close to major ferry ports, and surrounded by Normandy countryside.
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