Two French research students found stabbed to death following a flat fire had been bound and suffered "horrific, excessive injuries", police have said.
The bodies of Laurent Bonomo, 23, and Gabriel Ferez, 23, were found in a ground floor flat in New Cross, south-east London, on Sunday night.
Police said they had suffered head, neck and chest injuries in a "frenzied" attack before being set alight.
They had been in London for two months studying DNA at Imperial College.
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At a press conference at Scotland Yard, he said the flat had been broken into six days before and a laptop was stolen.
He also said a white male was seen running from the scene and asked for help in tracing him.
DCI Duthie said one line of inquiry was that the attack was a case of mistaken identity.
He added he was deeply shocked by the murder, adding: "I have never seen injuries inflicted to bodies like this before."
Lengthy ordeal
The detective said no weapon has been recovered during extensive searches in the area and both men must have suffered a lengthy ordeal.
He added that both victims suffered repeated stab wounds across their bodies and had been bound, possibly with materials from the flat.
The detective said the "talented" bio-engineering students had been in London since the beginning of May and were due to return to France at the end of July.
He said the emergency services were called after residents reported an explosion in Sterling Gardens on Sunday night.
DCI Duthie said an accelerant had also been used in the flat.
Police said Mr Bonomo, of Velaux, and Mr Ferez, of Prouzel, who studied at the Polytech Clermont-Ferrard in central France, were due to return home later this month.
The parents of the two men were in the UK, and had the "gruesome task" of identifying their sons, police said.
(BBC)
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