Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Caroline Mortimer

Couple accused of killing French nanny admit attempting to dispose of body by burning

A couple accused of killing their French nanny have admitted to perverting the course of justice by attempting to burn her body to dispose of it. 

Sophie Lionnet's charred remains were discovered last September, in the garden of a house in Southfields, south-west London.  

The 21-year-old’s bodhad been so badly burnt that that investigators initially struggled to identify her. 

But they later confirmed it was the nanny who had been living in Wandsworth but was originally froTroyes in north-east France. 

Designer Sabrina Kouider, 34, and her partner Ouissem Medouni, 40, deny murdering Ms Lionnet on or before 20 September last year.

But the pair, who also lived in Wandsworth, pleaded guilty at London's Old Bailey to a second charge of perverting the course of justice by attempting to "dispose of the body of Sophie Lionnet by burning".

Wearin>g a white shirt and black blazer Kouider appeared tearful as she sat in the dock. The Algerian national was helped to follow the hearing by a French interpreter.

Her partner, dressed in a burgundy sweatshirt, paused for a short time before entering a guilty plea to perverting the course of justice.

The case attracted international attention when the pair were first arrested when it emerged Kouider was the former girlfriend of an original member of the Irish boyband, Boyzone, who later went onto become a music mogul. 

The defendants face a five-week trial starting on 19 March this year.

Additional reporting by PA

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.