Two French exchange students who were found dead after a house fire in south-east London had been bound and stabbed in the head, neck and chest before the property was set alight.

©Met police/Getty

Laurent Bonomo and Gabriel Ferez, two French exchange students who were killed in London.

Laurent Bonomo of Velaux, and Gabriel Ferez, Prouzel, both 23, arrived in London in May to study bio-engineering, with a particular focus on DNA, at Imperial College under an exchange programme with the Polytech Clermont-Ferrard in central France.

Their three-month placement had been due to finish at the end of the month.

Detective Chief Inspector Mick Duthie, of the Metropolitan police, today described their injuries as the worst he had seen in his policing career.

"These were two young French students who were visitors to our country and had been in London for only a matter of weeks. They were talented students working on a dream project,'' Duthie said.

"The level of violence used on these two victims was excessive - it was horrendous. The extent of the injuries are horrific. Everyone working on this case, including myself, has been deeply shocked by what we have seen.

"I have never seen injuries like this throughout my career.''

Both victims suffered repeated stab wounds across their bodies and had been bound, possibly with materials from the flat.

Bonomo was stabbed almost 200 times with up to 100 injuries inflicted after he was already dead, police sources said. Ferez suffered around 50 injuries during the ordeal.

Detectives believe a burglary at the rented flat six days earlier, in which a laptop was stolen, could be linked to the double murder.

The two men were thought to have been playing computer games together before the attack.

Police were called to the fire at a building in Sterling Gardens, a quiet residential cul-de-sac in New Cross, at around 10pm on Sunday.

The fire started with an explosion, police said, as the property was severely damaged and there was a smell of accelerant. The fire was extinguished quickly but the men were dead before it took hold.

A white male was seen running from the building block shortly after the fire broke out. No weapon has so far been recovered.

Forensic examinations at the scene are said to be ''extremely complex''.

The two victims were found lying in the living area of the ground-floor bedsit.

Duthie said: "I do not know why these boys were killed or who killed them. I do believe, however, that whoever is responsible must have been blood-stained when they left."

Bonomo was known to be alive in the early hours of Sunday morning because he spoke to his girlfriend.

Asked to describe the attack, Duthie said: "I would not say this was a professional attack. I would say it was a frenzied, horrible, horrific attack.



"I imagine it would take some considerable amount of time to inflict the nature of the injuries."

Police said there was no evidence of forced entry and a set of keys may have been used, enabling an attacker to surprise his victims.

Duthie said mistaken identity was also one line of inquiry.

"We cannot find anything in these two young men's background to suggest they were involved in any criminality, that they had done anything wrong. They were here as students."

Members of the victims' families have travelled from France and had to endure ''the gruesome task'' of identifying their son's bodies this morning.

Duthie appealed for anyone who knew the men at Imperial College or who saw anything strange on Sunday night to come forward.

"I am appealing for anyone who was in the area of Sterling Gardens at any time over the weekend, and who may have seen or heard anything suspicious near the address, to get in touch. I am particularly keen to hear from anyone who may have seen anyone near the premises around 21.30 on Sunday."

Imperial rector Sir Roy Anderson the immediate thoughts of the community were with the men's families.

"Laurent and Gabriel had bright futures ahead of them and it is dreadful that their lives should end so soon."