Letter to the Attorney General
UPDATE: 2 July 2009
Statement
from Scott Lomax in response to the Attorney General’s decision not to
refer the sentences to the Court of Appeal
I am deeply disappointed by
the Attorney General’s decision not to refer the sentences of Dano
Sonnex and Nigel farmer to the Court of Appeal. The crimes perpetrated by
Sonnex and Farmer are amongst the most horrific ever seen in this country.
They acted with unprecedented levels of violence in a sustained and torturous
act of murder. Sonnex and Farmer broke into the London homes of French
students Laurnet Bonomo and Gabriel Ferez. They tied up the two students,
stabbed them a total of 244 times and set fire to their bodies and flat. They
have shown no remorse for their crimes.
There are a number of convicted murderers who have been told they will never
be released because of the exceptional circumstances of their crimes which
warrant their lifelong detention. It is my belief that the crimes of Sonnex
and Farmer equally warrant lifelong detention.
Whilst 35 and 40 years seems like a very long time, the current tariff makes
it quite possible that these two men could be released when they are in the
early 50s.
It is in the public interest that these two killers should never be released.
That is why I made the request that these sentences be reviewed. I have
requested a copy of any report written by the Attorney General in relation to
how she reached her decision. And I will now be exploring what options may be
left open to challenge the Attorney General’s decision.
UPDATE: 8 June 2009
The
Attorney General’s office have contacted me to
confirm they have requested the Crown Prosecution Service to send them all of
the case papers relating to these murders. They will be assessing whether to
refer the case to the Court of Appeal to upgrade the sentences, as a DIRECT
RESULT of my request (reproduced below).
S. C. Lomax
True crime
writer
Website: www.sclomax.co.uk
6 June 2009
Dear Baroness
Scotland QC,
I am writing to you to request that you examine
the sentences given to Dano Sonnex
and Nigel Farmer, who were convicted on 4
June 2009 of the murders of Laurent Bonomo and Gabriel
Ferez
The forty year tariff given to the killers is
unjustly lenient when compared with other high profile, torturous, brutal and
pre meditated murders. The gravity of this offence is unprecedented in
British criminal history and whilst violent murders of this sort stimulate
emotions and inevitably lead to all matter of hue and cry, the facts of this
case and the legal precedents set forth in a number of other cases provide
ample reason for my argument to be accepted and acted upon.
Both Sonnex and
Farmer were career criminals with a history of violence who acted with
unnecessary violence in a sustained, ferocious and depraved attack, without
provocation and after rendering their victims entirely indefensible. Both men
are highly dangerous and have shown no remorse for their actions or any
empathy towards the deaths of the victims.
I firmly believe that Sonnex
and Farmer should have their sentences upgraded to whole life tariffs. They
should die in prison, with no chance of parole.
I refer your Lordship’s attention to the
case of R. vs Hutchinson [2009]. In this case,
as you are no doubt aware, the whole lie tariff of Hutchinson was upheld at
the Court of Appeal on the grounds that: “This
was a truly shocking case. In the experience of all three members of this
court we can say that none of us is aware of a case of greater gravity or
more heinous than this case.”
I submit that in the murders of Laurent Bonomo and Gabriel Ferez were of sufficient gravity and sufficiently
heinous to warrant the same punishment for Sonnex
and Farmer as was handed down to Hutchinson.
The gravity of the crimes committed by Sonnex and Farmer are on par with, if they do not exceed,
the crimes of Ian Brady, Ian Huntley and others who have been granted life
imprisonment without parole.
It follows, therefore, that a whole life tariff
is justified in this instance.
I hope that you will give this matter serious
consideration and, in the interests of justice and public interest, upgrade
the sentences accordingly.
Yours sincerely,
S. C. Lomax
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