Laurent Bonomo

French biochemistry students Laurent Bonomo and Gabriel Ferez were found tortured, stabbed and burnt in Bonomo's southeast London apartment, on June 29, 2008. Police called the double homicide "frenzied" and "brutal," suggesting that it may have been a case of mistaken identity.¹ The pair was discovered when authorities responded to reports of an explosion and fire at the scene, and subsequently found the bodies in the burnt wreckage.

Fast Facts

1. Age: 23
2. Researching DNA
3. On 3 month assignment at London Imperial College
4. Student at France's Universite Blaise-Pascale
5. Apartment was in London's New Cross section
6. Stabbed 196 times²
7. Man seen running from building after explosion
8. Apartment broken into 6 days before³
9. Stolen: laptops, ATM cards, Sony PSPs
10. July 8: 33-year old suspect questioned after being treated for burns⁴

Evidence

With the help of witnesses, police developed a composite sketch of the suspect seen fleeing Bonomo's apartment after the explosion. The image, released July 6, 2008, depicts a white male in his 30s.⁵ Additional evidence turned up in the form of blood-stained clothing discovered near the crime scene⁵, as well as records of the victims' ATM cards being used to withdraw cash subsequent to the murders.²

Suspects

Nigel Farmer, age 33 and homeless, surrendered to police July 9 and was treated for burns on his hands and arms. The same day, police arrested 35-year-old Bernard Sonnex with an unnamed woman, age 25. As Farmer was charged in court the following day, police issued an urgent plea for information on Bernard Sonnex's brother, 23-year-old Daniel Sonnex — the suspect was apprehended less than an hour after the announcement.

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