Two Britons killed in Florida

US detectives are investigating how two British holiday-makers came to be shot dead in a rundown neighbourhood in Florida.

University friends James Cooper, 25, and James Kouzaris, 24, were murdered in a deprived part of the city of Sarasota in the early hours of Saturday.

Local officers said it was “very unusual” to find tourists in this area, which is about 20 kilometres away from the upmarket island city of Longboat Key where the pair were staying.

Sarasota police said the Britons were not carrying any drugs but would not confirm whether they had any money or weapons.

A 16-year-old boy has been arrested and charged with two counts of murder.

Kouzaris, from Northampton, was on a three-week holiday in Florida staying with Cooper, from Warwick, and his family.

The former Sheffield University students were found shot dead 50ft from each other in a street in the Newtown area of northern Sarasota at about 3am on Saturday.