A father paid tribute to his daughter, a student of Regent's College, today as police revealed they had hit a dead end in their search to bring the man believed to be the killer to justice. Norwegian student Martine Vik Magnussen died from compression o

A father paid tribute to his daughter, a student of Regent's College, today as police revealed they had hit a dead end in their search to bring the man believed to be the killer to justice.

Norwegian student Martine Vik Magnussen died from "compression of the neck", it was announced today at Westminster Coroner's Court, but the man wanted in connection with her death is still on the run.

At the pre-inquest hearing Det Chief Insp Jessica Wadsworth said that despite cooperating closely with the Home Office and Foreign Office, police are still no closer to bringing in Farouk Abdulhak, son of billionaire Yemeni businessman Shaher Abdulhak.

She said: "Farouk Abdulhak is wanted for the rape and murder of Martine Vik Magnussen and in addition there is a European arrest warrant for him.

"We believe he has been in Yemen since the crime and is still residing there. All efforts to get him to return to the UK have been unsuccessful."

The body of Ms Magnussen, 23, who lived in Chelsea, was discovered under a pile of rubble in Great Portland Street on March 16, 2008. She and Mr Abdulhak, who were students at the business school, were spotted together leaving London club Maddox in the early hours of the preceding Friday.

Speaking at a press conference at New Scotland Yard yesterday her father Nato worker Odd Petter Magnussen, 58, called for the suspect to hand himself in.

He said: "The fact that some countries lack an extradition treaty shouldn't be a reason for a person to avoid justice.