Latest news with #ZhenhaoZou
Daily Mail
22-06-2025
- Daily Mail
'Evil' student sentenced to life in jail for drugging and raping multiple women
One of Britain's worst rapists suspected of targeting over 60 victims has been jailed for life. Chinese student Zhenhao Zou, 28, was described as an 'evil' sexual predator who hid behind a 'charming mask' as he was imprisoned for a minimum of 24 years for drugging and raping ten women in London and China during his time as a student at University College London. Following his conviction in March, detectives revealed they had evidence relating to suspected attacks on another 50 women after uncovering a sickening collection of trophy videos kept by the engineering PhD student as a souvenir. A further 24 victims came forward to say they were raped by Zou while he was studying in the UK. He filmed some of his victims in sick home videos that he kept of his attacks. Victims told how they were 'haunted' by the sickening attacks as a judge said the sexual deviant had treated unconscious women like 'sex toys' for his own pleasure. Inner London Crown Court heard that Zou had offered to be chemically castrated to avoid a life sentence. However, Judge Rosina Cottage said he would always be a risk to the public because of his 'sexual interest' in 'asserting power and control over women', and added that his victims were just 'pieces in an elaborate game'. Upon sentencing him to life, Judge Cottage said: 'The charming mask hid the fact that you are also a sexual predator.' The son of a wealthy Chinese Communist Party official and industrialist, Zou stalked student bars, accommodation, and online dating apps for victims, plying unsuspecting women with drinks laced with drugs. He lured the women back to his lavish student apartment in East London with the promise of a party or help with studies, before stupefying them with drink and drugs until they fell unconscious, enabling him to film his sickening attacks on hidden bedroom spy cameras. One victim, who Zou had described as 'the perfect girlfriend choice', recalled waking in a strange room after going to a drinking party in 2021. The victim said: 'I experienced for the first time a loss of consciousness. I opened my eyes for a few seconds during the sexual assault in [Zou's] room, he was thrusting violently against my body. I was completely powerless and could only use all my strength to demand he stop. 'Although I lost consciousness just moments later, his face in that moment will clearly stay in my mind forever.' She later awoke naked next to him: 'Panic surged through me-everything about the room I was in was unfamiliar and I had no memory of how I got there. 'That night, it was as if the world had vanished from my life for hours. 'I will never forgive him.' TV appearance: Zou boasted of his sexual prowess and appeared on a dating show in China Another app: A Tinder profile where he appeared under a different name Disturbingly, many of the women targeted may not realize they had been raped as some of Zou's home videos showed his captives so incapacitated that he was able to slap one victim around the face without them rousing. Zou unwittingly left a treasure trove of evidence for officers by recording the attacks for his own twisted gratification and hoarding personal items stolen from victims, ranging from underwear and lipstick, to a Chanel earring. Out of it: Zou's home videos showed his captives so incapacitated that he was able to slap one victim around the face without them rousing By the time of his trial, only two of the ten victims had been identified by police, but now detectives have traced a third victim. Detectives have established from the video clips seized that there are at least another 50 unknown women attacked. One victim said the attack in his London flat in May 2023 had a 'severe impact' on her mental health, resulting in her self-harming to try to manage the pain. The judge said of her case: 'Outrageously, she was trolled on social media for having bravely warned others. It has rocked her to her core, she feels guilt for your behavior, you (Zou) feel no shame.' Found: A number of other illicit substances were also recovered by police Another victim in China described being 'gagged by shame' and 'haunted' by nightmares following the attack. On June 19, jurors who had earlier wept upon seeing the distressing rape videos returned to Inner London Crown Court to see him sentenced. Bespectacled Zou wore a navy suit and tie and he stared at jurors, showing no emotion as he was jailed. Contraceptives: Zou kept a large collection of condoms in a Louis Vuitton box Facade: He mostly posed as a diligent student Scotland Yard began investigating Zou in November 2023 after a woman reported him for rape. When officers examined his digital devices, they uncovered over 1,600 hours of videos. Victims living in Britain, China, Australia, the Middle East, and Europe have since come forward. Chillingly, Zou said the victims in his videos were only pretending to be asleep as he enjoyed 'time-stop' pornography. Saira Pike, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: 'Zou is a serial rapist and a danger to women. His life sentence reflects the heinous acts and harm he caused to women and the danger he posed to society.'
The Guardian
21-06-2025
- The Guardian
Serial rapist Zhenhao Zou facing second trial as more women come forward
Serial rapist Zhenhao Zou is facing a second trial with police and prosecutors preparing to charge the Chinese student with a second round of offences. Zou, 28, is already serving a minimum 24 years for attacking 10 young women in London and China. Sources say there have been discussions between detectives and lawyers for the Crown Prosecution Service about at least one more trial for the Chinese student. Zou was sentenced on Thursday to life imprisonment, even offering to be chemically castrated in hopes of getting a lighter sentence. Since his conviction in March at least 24 women have come forward to British police, several of whom have made formal statements which could be admissible in a new trial. Zou came to Britain as a student, first in Belfast in 2017 and then in London. While a PhD student in mechanical engineering at University College London he was arrested in January 2024. He drugged and attacked women, videoing most of his crimes for his own sexual gratification which turned into the compelling evidence that saw him convicted. One source said: 'We expect more charges; we expect a second trial.' Detectives at the Metropolitan police fear the effects of the drugs used in the attacks could leave victims with no memory of the assaults. Officers suspect he could be one of the worst sexual offenders in British history after recovering videos of him attacking a further 50 victims. In total, there were 1,270 videos, 1,660 hours of footage, and 58 videos of Zou raping women, most of whom are still to be identified. There were also drugs, including those used to stupefy his victims. In court, he bragged of having sex with several women a month. The videos show a male, believed to be Zou, attacking a series of women. Some of the videos do not show the victims' faces, and about half are believed to have taken place in the UK, with detectives identifying which country attacks took place in by scouring videos for clues, such as the style of plug socket visible in the room. The drugs can render a victim motionless or barely able to speak, but they can also lead to bouts of euphoria. Despite the convictions against Zou for attacking 10 women, prosecutors want to be able to counter any defence in any new trial that the women were consenting. Sentencing Zou the judge, Rosina Cottage KC, said he would 'groom' victims over social media, and added: 'These women you treated callously as sex toys for your pleasure.' Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, or 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at
New Straits Times
20-06-2025
- New Straits Times
Chinese student gets life in UK jail for 'campaign of rape'
LONDON: A Chinese post-graduate student convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in the UK and China — and suspected of having attacked more — was on Thursday jailed for life by a London court. Police in London say they have evidence to suggest he may have targeted more than 50 other women. Serial rapist Zhenhao Zou, 28 — described in court as "calculated and predatory" — targeted young Chinese women whom he invited to his London flat for drinks or to study, before drugging and attacking them. Zou filmed nine of the rapes with hidden or handheld cameras, but only three of the 10 victims have ever been identified. Sentencing him at Inner London Crown Court, Judge Rosina Cottage said there was "no doubt that you planned and executed a campaign of rape" that had caused "devastating and long-term effects." To the world, he appeared "well-to-do, ambitious and charming," but this was a mask hiding a "sexual predator," she said. He treated his victims "callously" as "sex toys" for his own gratification, and his desire to assert "power and control over women" meant that he would be a "risk for an indefinite period," she added. Zou, wearing a dark suit and glasses, listened impassively in the dock to the sentence via a translator. He will serve a minimum of 22 years in jail, after accounting for time already spent in custody. The former engineering student at University College London was found guilty by a jury in March of 28 offences, including 11 counts of rape — with two of the counts relating to one woman — three counts of voyeurism, and one of false imprisonment. He was found guilty of raping three women in London and seven in China between 2019 and 2023. He was also convicted of three counts of possessing butanediol — an industrial solvent — with intent to commit a sexual offence, and 10 counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image. Victims told the sentencing hearing in impact statements of the psychological damage they suffered, including nightmares, self-harm, and a sense of despair and isolation. One recalled "wandering like a trapped animal trying to find an exit" after she was attacked. "What happened that night is etched into my soul forever," she said, adding that Zou's family was "very powerful in China" and she feared he would "seek revenge." After the sentence, Saira Pike of the Crown Prosecution Service described Zou as a "serial rapist and a danger to women." "His life sentence reflects the heinous acts and harm he caused to women and the danger he posed to society." Analysis of footage and web chats showed the former student's "meticulous planning and the horrifying execution of his crimes." Pike paid tribute to the "courageous women" who came forward to report his "horrific crimes," and whose evidence — combined with his own videos — helped secure his conviction and life sentence. Since he was convicted, and following an international appeal by UK police, some 24 women have come forward to say they might have been sexually assaulted by Zou. London's Met Police have said they have evidence to suggest he may have targeted more than 50 other women, and urged possible victims to come forward, adding that he had also studied in Belfast in Northern Ireland in 2017. "Our investigation remains open, and we continue to appeal to anyone who may think they have been a victim of Zou," said Commander Kevin Southworth of the Metropolitan Police. "Please come forward and speak with our team — we will treat you with empathy, kindness and respect."
Daily Mail
20-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Chinese PhD student who drugged and raped 10 women asked to be chemically castrated in bid to avoid jail time
A Chinese PhD student who drugged and raped 10 women asked to be chemically castrated in an attempt to avoid going to prison. Zhenhao Zou, 28, was yesterday jailed for a minimum of 22 years for the vile attacks during his time studying at University College, London. Following his conviction in March, detectives revealed they had evidence relating to suspected attacks on another 50 women in the UK and China after uncovering a sickening collection of trophy videos kept by the engineering PhD student as a souvenir. Now a further 24 victims have come forward saying they were raped by Zou while he was studying in the UK. The fiend filmed some of his victims helpless and stupefied in sick home videos that he kept of his attacks. Inner London Crown Court heard that Zou had offered to be chemically castrated to avoid a life sentence. But Judge Rosina Cottage said he would always be a risk to the public because of his 'sexual interest' in 'asserting power and control over women', adding that the victims were just 'pieces in an elaborate game'. Jailing him for life, she said: 'The charming mask hid the fact that you are also a sexual predator.' Chemical castration of paedophiles and other sex offenders is currently being piloted in south-west England, and includes taking two drugs, one to limit sexual thoughts and the other to reduce testosterone and limit libido. Chemical castration is voluntary in Germany, France, Sweden and Denmark, and some sex offenders actively seek it out. Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood recently announced the existing pilot would be expanded to 20 prisons. Victims told yesterday how they were 'haunted' by what Zou had done to them as a judge said he had treated unconscious women like 'sex toys' for his own pleasure. The son of a wealthy Chinese Communist Party official and industrialist, Zou stalked student bars, accommodation and online dating apps looking for victims, plying unsuspecting women with drinks laced with drugs. He lured the women back to his lavish student apartment in East London with the promise of a party or help with studies, before stupefying them with drink and drugs until they fell unconscious, enabling him to film his sickening attacks on hidden bedroom spy cameras. One victim, whom Zou had described as 'the perfect girlfriend choice', recalled waking in a strange room after going to a drinking party in 2021: 'I experienced for the first time a loss of consciousness. 'I opened my eyes for a few seconds during the sexual assault in his room, he was thrusting violently against my body. I was completely powerless and could only use all my strength to demand he stop. 'Although I lost consciousness just moments later, his face in that moment will clearly stay in my mind forever.' She later awoke naked lying next to him: 'Panic surged through me-everything about the room I was in was unfamiliar and I had no memory of how I got there. 'That night, it was as if the world had vanished from my life for hours. 'Everything in this world- my memories, time, even my own body- no longer felt like mine. Overwhelmed by fear, my only thought was to escape. A Tinder profile where the student appears under a different name 'Stumbling out of his room, I found myself in a completely unknown place. I didn't know where I was or how to leave. The memories of that night were fragmented- I only recall wandering like a trapped animal, desperately searching for an exit. 'For over a week afterward, I locked myself in my bathroom, consumed by terror, confusion, anger, and shame.' She added: 'I still can't read news about him or see his photo without feeling sick... 'To this day, I struggle to trust anyone. I avoid new friendships, trapped in the aftermath of what he did. 'Words will never fully convey the depth of this wound. But one thing is certain: what happened that night is etched into my soul forever. His face, his expression-they will never leave me. 'I will never forgive him.' Disturbingly, many of the women targeted may not realise they had been raped as some of Zou's home videos showed his captives so incapacitated that he was able to slap one victim around the face without them rousing. Zou unwittingly left a treasure trove of evidence for officers by recording the attacks for his own twisted gratification and hoarding personal items stolen from victims, ranging from underwear and lipstick to a Chanel earring. The bedroom in Zou's flat, where he chillingly boasted that 'the sound insulation is very good' By the time of his trial, only two of the 10 rape victims had been identified by police, but now detectives have traced a third victim. Detectives have established from the video clips seized that there are at least another 50 unknown women attacked. One victim said the attack in his London flat in May 2023 had a 'severe impact' on her mental health, resulting in her self-harming to try to manage the pain. 'I have no trust in others. Before this incident, I was not aware that a human could do such evil things,' she said in her victim impact statement. 'I am in so much mental agony and pain. I am not sure anything will help what I have gone through. 'When I heard that he had been found guilty, I was very pleased but even more pleased as I knew that women were safe, and there would be no more victims who would have to go through what I have gone through. 'When I see his image I am overcome with fear. 'I know his family is very powerful in China, and he may blame me for ruining his what was a potentially prosperous future. I believe he would confront me and seek revenge by doing horrible things. 'I fear if he is released he will commit the same crime again, I do not think he has learnt his lesson, or ever will.' A hidden spy camera that the rapist used to record his crimes The judge said of her case: 'Outrageously, she was trolled on social media for having bravely warned others. It has rocked her to her core, she feels guilt for your behaviour, you (Zou) feel no shame.' Another victim in China described being 'gagged by shame' and 'haunted' by nightmares following the attack. Yesterday, jurors who had earlier wept on seeing the distressing rape videos, returned to Inner London Crown Court to see him sentenced. Bespectacled Zou, smartly dressed in a navy suit and tie, stared at jurors, showing no emotion as he was jailed. Scotland Yard began investigating Zou in November 2023 after a woman reported him for rape. When officers examined his digital devices, they uncovered more than 1,600 hours of videos. Victims living in Britain, China, Australia, the Middle East and Europe have since come forward. Chillingly, Zou said the victims in his videos were only pretending to be asleep as he enjoyed 'time-stop' pornography. But officers believe the sexual deviant is one of Britain's most prolific sex offenders after Reynhard Sinaga and Black cab rapist John Worboys. Sinaga, 42, was convicted of 159 sex attacks on 48 heterosexual men in Manchester between 2015 and 2017. Worboys, 67, was convicted of 19 sex attacks against 12 women between 2006 and 2008. Zou was convicted in March for raping three women in London and seven victims in China between September 2019 and May 2023. He was also convicted of 11 counts of rape, three counts of voyeurism, 10 of possession of an extreme pornographic image, one of false imprisonment and three of possession of a controlled drug with intent to commit a sexual offence, namely butanediol. Saira Pike, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: 'Zou is a serial rapist and a danger to women. His life sentence reflects the heinous acts and harm he caused to women and the danger he posed to society.' The Metropolitan Police is appealing to anyone who thinks they may have been targeted by Zou to contact the force either by emailing survivors@ or via the major incident public portal on the force's website.
HKFP
20-06-2025
- HKFP
UK court sentences Chinese student to life in prison for ‘campaign of rape'
A Chinese post-graduate student convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in the UK and China and suspected of having attacked more was on Thursday jailed for life by a London court. Police in London say they have evidence to suggest he may have targeted more than 50 other women. Serial rapist Zhenhao Zou, 28 — described in court as 'calculated and predatory' — targeted young Chinese women whom he invited to his London flat for drinks or to study before drugging and attacking them. Zou filmed nine of the rapes with hidden or handheld cameras, but only three of the 10 victims have ever been identified. Sentencing him at Inner London Crown Court, Judge Rosina Cottage said there was 'no doubt that you planned and executed a campaign of rape' that had caused 'devastating and long term effects'. To the world he appeared 'well to do, ambitious and charming' but this was a mask hiding a 'sexual predator', she said. He treated his victims 'callously' as 'sex toys' for his own gratification, and his desire to assert 'power and control over women' meant that he would be a 'risk for an indefinite period', she added. Zou, wearing a dark suit and glasses, listened impassively in the dock to the sentence via a translator. He will serve a minimum of 22 years in jail, after accounting for time already spent in custody. The former engineering student at University College London was found guilty by a jury in March of 28 offences including 11 counts of rape — with two of the counts relating to one woman — three counts of voyeurism and one of false imprisonment. He was found guilty of raping three women in London and seven in China between 2019 and 2023. He was also convicted of three counts of possessing butanediol — an industrial solvent — with intent to commit a sexual offence and 10 counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image. 'Prolific' rapist Victims told the sentencing hearing in impact statements of the psychological damage they suffered including nightmares, self harm and a sense of despair and isolation. One recalled 'wandering like a trapped animal trying to find an exit' after she was attacked. 'What happened that night is etched into my soul forever,' she said, adding that Zou's family was 'very powerful in China' and she feared he would 'seek revenge'. After the sentence, Saira Pike of the Crown Prosecution Service described Zou as a 'serial rapist and a danger to women'. 'His life sentence reflects the heinous acts and harm he caused to women and the danger he posed to society.' Analysis of footage and web chats showed the former student's 'meticulous planning and the horrifying execution of his crimes'. And Pike paid tribute to the 'courageous women' who came forward to report his 'horrific crimes' and whose evidence — combined with his own videos — helped secure his conviction and life sentence. Since he was convicted, and following an international appeal by UK police, some 24 women had come forward to say they might have been sexually assaulted by Zou. London's Met police have said they have evidence to suggest he may have targeted more than 50 other women and urged possible victims to come forward, adding that he had also studied in Belfast in Northern Ireland in 2017. 'Our investigation remains open and we continue to appeal to anyone who may think they have been a victim of Zou,' said Commander Kevin Southworth of the Metropolitan Police. 'Please come forward and speak with our team -– we will treat you with empathy, kindness and respect.' LATEST FROM HKFP Schools must be national security 'gatekeepers,' gov't says after principal warns against US consulate event Gov't vows strict vetting of applications for event subsidies, performance venues to prevent 'soft resistance' UK court sentences Chinese student to life in prison for 'campaign of rape' Hong Kong proposes registration of subdivided flats from March 2026 to phase out 'substandard' living spaces
