Chinese PhD Student Zhenhao Zou Sentenced to 24-Year Minimum for Raping 10 Women in UK and China
Chinese PhD Student Zhenhao Zou Sentenced to 24-Year Minimum for Raping 10 Women in UK and China
A Chinese PhD student who has been labeled by London’s Metropolitan Police as “one of the most prolific predators” in the United Kingdom has been Sentenced to prison for a minimum of 24 years for drugging and raping 10 women in both London and China.
Zhenhao Zou, aged 28, was found guilty of 28 charges, including 11 counts of rape, voyeurism, possession of extreme pornographic images.
Zou went to the UK in 2017 to study mechanical engineering at Queen’s University Belfast before pursuing a master’s and PhD at University College London (UCL). From September 2019 to May 2023.
He started targeting women moslty Chinese students, whom he met via social media platforms.
Zou enticed victims to his apartments in London and other undisclosed locations in China, where he drugged them with substances such as butanediol, which converts to the date-rape drug.
He recorded nine of the rapes with hidden cameras and kept a “trophy box” containing victims’ items, like jewelry and clothing.
On Thursday. Judge Rosina Cottage called Zou a highly manipulative and intelligent young man.
“You meticulously planned and carried out a series of rapes, treating these women as mere objects for your gratification, causing profound and lasting harm.” She remarked.
Zou will serve at least 22 years and 227 days in prison and will remain on license for life.
According to BBC, the case surfaced in November 2023 when a woman reported an assault, leading to Zou’s arrest in January 2024 at his Elephant and Castle home in southeast London.
Police later uncovered 1,664 hours of footage, including 58 rape videos, and evidence of careful planning through millions of messages on Zou’s devices.