Two men charged over suspected 'honour killing' of teenager whose body was found in London fridge

A second woman was kidnapped and attacked in the incident in south London but escaped

Police have charged two men in connection with the suspected honour killing and kidnap of a second woman (PA)

Two men have been charged in connection with the suspected "honour killing" of a teenager whose body was found in a fridge.

The Metropolitan Police said a 33-year-old man has been charged with the murder, rape and kidnap of the 19-year-old woman.

He is further charged with the rape, attempted murder and with the kidnap of a second victim, a woman aged in her 20s.

A second man, aged 28, has been charged with the kidnap of both the 19-year-old woman and the woman aged in her 20s.

The body of the teenager was found inside a fridge at a house in Kingston three hours after she was reported missing along with the older woman last Wednesday.

Police said the women may have been forced to go to the address by a man they both knew before being subjected to a “violent attack”.

The older woman managed to escape and raise the alarm and was admitted to a south London hospital with stab and slash wounds on Wednesday evening before police went to the house in Coombe Lane West.

A post-mortem examination carried out on Friday gave the cause of death as an incised wound to the neck.

Police said formal identification of the teenager has not yet taken place.

The two women were last seen alive and well at an address in Merton. Police were alerted with concerns about their welfare at around 5pm.

The Met said officers did not find them at two addresses, in Sutton and Merton, in south London, and inquiries continued until they were alerted by hospital staff at 7.18pm.

The Directorate of Professional Standards was informed and a referral was made to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) because of the short time between the two women being reported missing to police and when one of them was found dead.

A woman, 29, who was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender, was released under investigation, and police said they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the case.

Both men, who have not yet been named, are due to appear before Wimbledon Magistrates' Court on Monday.