Billionaire's son accused of raping and murdering student confesses for first time

A billionaire's son who is accused of raping and murdering a student has admitted his involvement for the first time.

Martine Magnussen, 23, was killed in London 14 years ago and her body was found under rubble in a basement.

Farouk Abdulhak, who is on the Met Police's Most Wanted list, fled the UK and has remained in his home country of Yemen ever since.

Martine and Abdulhak were recorded on CCTV leaving Maddox nightclub in Mayfair on March 14, 2008. She had been celebrating the end of her exams at Regent’s Business School and was to return to Norway that week.

Martine stayed at Abdulhak’s flat nearby, but her housemates called her family when she did not return for 24 hours.

Officers found a trail of blood from Martine’s body to Abdulhak’s flat, where there were signs of a struggle. She had been raped and strangled.

An inquest in 2010 recorded a verdict of unlawful killing.

Abdulhak, now 35, has never spoken about his involvement before until now and claimed to the BBC that Martine's death was a "sex accident gone wrong", despite the coroner determining it was a violent death.

Abdulhak is the son of Shaher Abdulhak, one of the richest and most powerful men in Yemen. He was a close friend of the president at the time Ali Abdullah Saleh.

His father died in 2020, and in the wake of the civil war, many of his family members fled Yemen - leaving Abdulhak in isolation.

A BBC investigation into the case lead to a journalist speaking directly with Abdulhak where he made startling admissions.

When asked about returning to the UK to face the consequences of Martine's death, Abdulhak said: "I don't think justice will be served.

"I find that the criminal justice system there [in the UK] is heavily biased. I find that they will want to make an example of me being a son of an Arab, being… a son of someone rich… it's way too late."

When Abdulhak was asked directly what happened he said: "It was just an accident. Nothing nefarious. Just a sex accident gone wrong."

He said he struggles to piece together what happened and blames "cocaine".

Abdulhak has never spoken about his involvement in this detail before, but he's told the BBC he's been advised against turning himself in - causing further pain for Martine's family.

Last year, the Mirror spoke to Martine's father, Odd Petter Magnussen, who continues to beg for Abdulhak to return to the UK.

He told the Mirror at the time: "All I’ve ever wanted from Abdulhak is for him to return voluntarily to the UK to tell the police what happened to Martine that night. He could do that and later become a free man, rather than staying a fugitive in Yemen where he will never have his freedom.

"That is the very simple demand I have. Go back to the UK, talk to the police, tell them what happened."

Odd Petter Magnussen, Martine's father, wants Abdulhak to return to the UK ( Image: PA)

Credit: mirror.co.uk