The Fishers were beaten after they were shot

Carole and Graham Fisher were brutally beaten after they had been shot at their bungalow and petrol station on the A39 near Wadebridge on 5 November.

They were victims of a pre-planned and personal attack, police believe.

Officers said the level of violence used in the murders meant the crime was unlikely to have been committed during a bungled burglary.

Couple bludgeoned

The body of Mrs Fisher, 53, was found by a bus driver outside the Perch Garage at about 0900 GMT on Thursday.

Police believe she was shot inside the bungalow and again in the back as she tried to escape. She was shot a third time as she lay wounded on the ground.

Mr Fisher, 60, was found dead in a hallway inside the bungalow. He had been shot twice.

The killers then bludgeoned the couple around their heads with a blunt instrument as they lay dying.

Police still do not know the motive for the killings, which were carried out when fireworks could have masked the sound of gunshots.

It is thought the attack was carried out by more than one person and possible the couple knew their killers, police said.

Village reaction to deaths

Detective Superintendent Stuart Newberry said: "I don't think this is a speculative burglary. I think this is more about the Fishers themselves."

"The sheer savagery of the attack on both of them takes this far beyond a robbery where the individuals' prime interest was in stealing property and getting away."

A dog walker found two gun stocks in bushes in Edmonton around a mile-and-a-quarter from the crime scene on Saturday.

The stocks match the barrels of two shotguns owned by Mr Fisher, but are not thought to be the murder weapon.

Officers have yet to find the shotgun or guns used to kill the Fishers.

"It does look as though the perpetrator has been so cold and callous as to have taken them from the scene," Detective Superintendent Stuart Newberry said.

Neighbours have described the Fishers as an introverted couple who ran their business together and "kept themselves to themselves", socialising only with a small group of close friends.

But both police and Mr and Mrs Fisher's family have appealed for anyone with information to come forward.