The woman, Catherine Bury, from Northallerton, North Yorkshire, was killed in the early hours of Monday morning while celebrating her 56th birthday with her mother, Cecille Bury, 87, and her son, Alexander Bury, 24.
According to the local authorities, Catherine Bury had an argument with the gardener on Friday during which he threatened her and her family. The reason for the reported dispute is unclear.
Catherine Bury and her son reported the gardener's "death threats" to the local jandarma, Turkey's rural police.
One officer, who wished to remain anonymous, said the suspect was subsequently detained at around noon on Saturday. While suspects can be held for 24 hours under Turkish law, he was released in the early hours of Sunday morning because the police had been unable to find proof that he had committed any crime.
Local media reported that the gardener armed himself with a pump-action shotgun after his release and later returned to the villa, where he shot Cecille Bury in the back and seriously wounded Alexander Bury with a shot to the leg.
He was then said to have pursued Catherine Bury up three flights of stairs to the top floor of the villa where she locked herself inside the bathroom. After shooting at the lock of the door, he allegedly entered the room and fired four shots at her, killing her.
Immediately after the attack, the gardener, who had been working at the resort for six years and is a Dalyan resident, turned himself in to the local police and was arrested.
He is reportedly 46 years old and has only been identified by his initials, VA. He was transferred to a prison in Fethiye on Monday and is awaiting trial.
Neighbours of Catherine Bury, in the picturesque village of Swainby, near the North Yorkshire Moors, expressed their shock at the news.
Stephen Garbutt, who lives in the adjoining bungalow to where Catherine Bury and her son lived, described her as "a real lady". He said: "I never ever heard a bad word, or a cross word, or anything like that from any of them. How on earth they got into this situation I cannot imagine. I have never known Anne, for want of a better word, in trouble."
He said that his neighbour, who trained as a midwife, had been working for an oil company in Dubai in a health role.
Her son, known as Alex, worked at a local hotel, the Cleveland Tontine, after taking a year out of university and was hoping to restart his studies in medicine.
Garbutt's wife, Jennifer, said: "She [Catherine Bury] never offended anybody ... They were a lovely family and this has broken my heart. It has knocked me for six."
Cecille Bury was released from the Fethiye state hospital on Tuesday. According to a source at the Mugla Sitki Kocman university hospital, Alexander Bury was transferred out of the intensive care unit. The Turkish ministry of culture and tourism said he was in a stable condition at the hospital. It is not clear when he will be released.
The reason for the attack is still unclear. Dalyan is a small resort on the river Cayi, famous for its sulphur mud baths, and is a popular day trip for British tourists staying in nearby Fethiye and Marmaris.
The ministry of culture and tourism said a full investigation is under way and that the chief suspect was in custody. Turkish TV footage showed detectives searching the property, where balloons and other signs of a celebration were still visible.
One woman working in the Dalyan municipality said that local people were devastated by the crime.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are aware of the death of a British national in Turkey on 9 September.
"We are providing consular assistance to the family at this difficult time."
It also confirmed the hospitalisation of a further two British nationals.
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