British expat shot dead in Libya 'at wrong place at wrong time'
A British man found shot dead on a beach in Libya with his girlfriend was "in the wrong place at the wrong time", an inquest has heard.
Mark Fane de Salis, 48, originally from Shefford, Bedfordshire and his girlfriend Lynn Howie, 47, from New Zealand, were found face down in the sand near Tripoli alongside a picnic blanket and food on January 2 last year.
Both had bullet wounds in the backs of their heads, reports the BBC.
No motive has yet been found for the execution-style killings and the killers have not been found.
Coroner Tom Osborne recorded a conclusion of unlawful killing saying Mark was targeted at random.
He said: "He was in Libya when it was still in a state of flux. This was a totally motiveless crime.
"He was in the wrong place at the wrong time."
According to the Mirror, Mark had been living in Libya for six years and worked as a power station project manager.
Post-mortems showed both victims were shot in the back of the head from close range.
Valuables were found on their bodies ruling out robbery as a possible motive.
Det Sgt Andy Phillips from New Scotland Yard said it was a totally motiveless crime.
He said the Foreign Office asked the Metropolitan Police to act as the link between Britain and Libya.
Neither the force nor the Libyan authorities had been able to ascertain who was responsible for the deaths.
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