This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/london/8073659.stm
The article has changed 20 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 6 | Version 7 |
|---|---|
| Two men guilty of student murders | Two men guilty of student murders |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Two men have been found guilty of murdering two French students in a bedsit in south-east London. | Two men have been found guilty of murdering two French students in a bedsit in south-east London. |
| Gabriel Ferez and Laurent Bonomo, both 23, suffered hundreds of stab wounds after being tied up during the attack in New Cross in June 2008. | Gabriel Ferez and Laurent Bonomo, both 23, suffered hundreds of stab wounds after being tied up during the attack in New Cross in June 2008. |
| Dano Sonnex, 23, of Peckham, south London, and Nigel Farmer, 33, of no fixed address, had denied murder. | Dano Sonnex, 23, of Peckham, south London, and Nigel Farmer, 33, of no fixed address, had denied murder. |
| Justice Secretary Jack Straw has apologised to the families over blunders which left Sonnex free. | Justice Secretary Jack Straw has apologised to the families over blunders which left Sonnex free. |
| A senior probation officer in London has resigned as a result of the mistakes. | A senior probation officer in London has resigned as a result of the mistakes. |
| 'Appalling, sadistic murders' | 'Appalling, sadistic murders' |
| Six weeks before the killings, magistrates had granted Sonnex bail on charges of handling stolen goods. | Six weeks before the killings, magistrates had granted Sonnex bail on charges of handling stolen goods. |
| He was expected to be recalled to prison to serve the remainder of an earlier sentence, but the paperwork was not ready and he walked free from court. | He was expected to be recalled to prison to serve the remainder of an earlier sentence, but the paperwork was not ready and he walked free from court. |
| Lydie Bonomo said her son Laurent would still be alive today if the mistakes had not been made. | Lydie Bonomo said her son Laurent would still be alive today if the mistakes had not been made. |
| Mr Straw condemned the crimes as "the most appalling, sadistic, and gratuitous murders". | Mr Straw condemned the crimes as "the most appalling, sadistic, and gratuitous murders". |
| Students Gabriel Ferez and Laurent Bonomo were tied up and stabbed | Students Gabriel Ferez and Laurent Bonomo were tied up and stabbed |
| He said: "The direct responsibility for these killings must lie - as the jury found - with the criminals Sonnex and Farmer. | He said: "The direct responsibility for these killings must lie - as the jury found - with the criminals Sonnex and Farmer. |
| "But it is also the case that Sonnex could and should have been in custody at the time he committed these murders. | "But it is also the case that Sonnex could and should have been in custody at the time he committed these murders. |
| "It was the consequence of very serious failures across the criminal justice system that he had not been arrested and incarcerated some weeks before." | "It was the consequence of very serious failures across the criminal justice system that he had not been arrested and incarcerated some weeks before." |
| He added a number of reviews had since taken place, the result of which is that 100 new probation officers would be recruited in the capital over the next two years. | He added a number of reviews had since taken place, the result of which is that 100 new probation officers would be recruited in the capital over the next two years. |
| The Metropolitan Police now has a unit in each London borough dedicated to arresting wanted offenders. | The Metropolitan Police now has a unit in each London borough dedicated to arresting wanted offenders. |
| Farmer was also found guilty at the Old Bailey of burglary, a charge Sonnex had already admitted. | Farmer was also found guilty at the Old Bailey of burglary, a charge Sonnex had already admitted. |
| Unimaginable horror | Unimaginable horror |
| Both men were also found guilty of false imprisonment and arson. | Both men were also found guilty of false imprisonment and arson. |
| The pair will be sentenced later on Thursday. | The pair will be sentenced later on Thursday. |
| What the firemen found was a scene of almost unimaginable horror Prosecutor Crispin Aylett href="/1/hi/uk/8072939.stm">In Pictures: The murder scene (Contains disturbing images) | |
| During the trial, prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC said Mr Ferez and Mr Bonomo had been tortured then murdered because Sonnex and Farmer were unable to get cash from a machine using one of the students' bank cards. | During the trial, prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC said Mr Ferez and Mr Bonomo had been tortured then murdered because Sonnex and Farmer were unable to get cash from a machine using one of the students' bank cards. |
| Mr Aylett said: "To take revenge for the fact that they had been unable to steal money from Mr Ferez, both men were murdered in a way that can only be described as inhuman. | Mr Aylett said: "To take revenge for the fact that they had been unable to steal money from Mr Ferez, both men were murdered in a way that can only be described as inhuman. |
| "What the firemen found was a scene of almost unimaginable horror." | "What the firemen found was a scene of almost unimaginable horror." |
| Sonnex and Farmer had blamed each other, but Mr Aylett described the crime as a "joint enterprise of unmitigated evil". | Sonnex and Farmer had blamed each other, but Mr Aylett described the crime as a "joint enterprise of unmitigated evil". |
| Mr Bonomo and Mr Ferez were biochemistry students at the Polytech Clermont-Ferrand. | Mr Bonomo and Mr Ferez were biochemistry students at the Polytech Clermont-Ferrand. |
| They were weeks away from finishing a research project at Imperial College when they were killed on 29 June. | They were weeks away from finishing a research project at Imperial College when they were killed on 29 June. |
| Advertisement | Advertisement |
| Farmer and Sonnex were caught by CCTV several times on the day of the attack | Farmer and Sonnex were caught by CCTV several times on the day of the attack |