HAMPSHIRE police could be forced to dredge a part of the Beaulieu River in a bid to find the murder weapon used to kill mum-of-five Pennie Davis.

Detectives are today stepping up their manhunt to find the killer of the 47-year-old who was discovered in a field stabbed to death by her husband Pete.

Officers are still unclear about the motive for her vicious murder and have yet to find the murder weapon, which could hold vital clues to finding the murderer.

Residents living in Beaulieu yesterday spoke of their fear with a killer on the run in their normally quiet community, which is preparing for one of its busiest weekend of the year as the Autojumble gets underway.

Pennie, who had only been married for four months, had been tending to her horses at the paddock near Beaulieu, when she was knifed to death.

It was her husband Pete, who she had only been married to for four months, who made the horrific discovery of his wife’s body.

According to Hampshire police he had arranged to meet his wife at the paddock near Beaulieu where she kept horses, to help with the mucking out.

Pennie, who is understood to have only taken over the tenancy of the field opposite Leygreen Farm in the past few days, had visited her horses each day since she moved them there.

Police believe Pennie, who lived and worked in Blackfield, arrived some time around 2pm on Tuesday before her husband raised the alarm shortly before 5pm.

Detective Superintendend Paul Barton said: “He found her lying in the field and on closer examination he could see that she had suffered serious injuries.”

Mr Davis then contacted the emergency services but Pennie, a former Southampton Daily Echo employee, was pronounced dead at the scene.

It was 24 hours later that police declared it was a murder rather than the “sudden death” they had been treating it as.

According to Det Supt Barton it wasn’t until the post-mortem pathologist examined the injuries, that detectives were able to confirm it was a murder inquiry.

Hampshire police would not comment on whether the murder weapon, thought to be a knife, had been found, or whether Pennie had been sexually assaulted, only that she had died from multiple stab wounds.

Yesterday a team of more than 70 officers were involved in the hunt for her killer.

He said he was keeping an open mind on the motive of the killer: “It is a hypothesis that Mrs Davis was known to her killer but equally she may have not have done.

“This was a vicious attack in a remote area and we do not have the benefit of CCTV or automatic number plate recognition or any of the other things that we can usually rely on.

“However, this is a popular route used by local commuters from Lymington to Southampton to avoid Lyndhurst.

“We believe there will have been tourists in this area at the time as well as commuters, walkers, and people out fishing in the adjacent river.

The investigation has been code named Operation Biscotti and is urging anyone with information who was in the area to contact the investigation team on 101 or anonymously call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.