I've had a no crank/no start in a Boxster with a Tiptronic transmission that was not quite fully in the Park position. It could happen in a manual transmission car if the clutch pedal safety switch is stuck.
I took it when he said he "turned the key and got absolutely nothing" that he meant no power to anything.
If it was a no crank/no start I would approach the problem a little differently then I outlined above.
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