Serial rapist Zou Zhenhao sentenced to life imprisonment in UK
Serial rapist Zou Zhenhao was jailed for life in the UK on Thursday (Jun 19), with a minimum term of 24 years. The 28-year-old Chinese student, who lived in south London, was convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in the UK and China, though British police have identified at least 50 others from video footage he took during those assaults.
Three of Zou's victims read testimonies in court ahead of his sentencing, describing their enduring trauma, feelings of powerlessness and mental health struggles.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
4 hours ago
- CNA
Former teacher who molested 7-year-old student in classroom jailed for 9 months
SINGAPORE: A former Chinese language teacher who touched the inner thigh of his female student, then around seven years old, was given nine months' jail on Friday (Jun 20). The molestation was in 2019 but left a mark on the young girl's mind until she reported it three years later. The 38-year-old Malaysian national and Singapore permanent resident pleaded guilty to a count of aggravated molest of a victim under 14. Both the accused and victim, now 13, cannot be named to protect the latter's identity. According to a past media report, the accused is no longer a teacher. The victim was then a Primary 2 student between seven and eight years old, and the accused was her Chinese language and form teacher. The offence occurred in 2019 when the girl approached the teacher's table to find out the name of a song in the music video he was playing from a laptop. She was in her classroom. Nearing the end of class, the girl stood to the left of the accused to look at the screen while the man sat on the teacher's chair. The man then placed his hand under the girl's skirt and touched her inner thigh for a few seconds, causing the girl to feel uncomfortable. There were no other students at the teacher's table then. She told him that the touch felt "itchy" before joining her classmates for recess. When she was in primary 5, the girl informed her school's vice-principal about the molestation on Apr 28, 2022. Court documents did not describe what led to this moment. A psychiatrist who assessed the victim in April 2023 said that the girl felt "scared and angry" after the incident with suicidal thoughts. "She had recurrent thoughts and flashbacks about the offence. The victim also expressed a fear of males and reported difficulty trusting others, which (the psychiatrist) opined could lead to problems with interpersonal relationships later in life," the prosecution said. The prosecution argued for eight to 10 months' jail, noting how the accused had only pleaded guilty "on the doorstep of trial". The man's lawyer Anil Sandhu described his client as apologetic and informed the court that he is father of three young children. His wife was present for his hearing. District Judge Lim Tse Haw noted how teachers were held in high regard by society and trusted by parents to "impart knowledge and good moral values" in students. "Hence when our teachers breach that sacred trust and instead violate the modesty of our students, they must expect to receive a deterrent sentence, so that a clear message is sent out that society views such serious (offences) with opprobrium," Judge Lim said. He took into account the victim's young age but noted that the touch was fleeting and did not intrude on her private parts.
CNA
7 hours ago
- CNA
Jail for part-time tutor who filmed young students, own sisters in toilets over 10 years
SINGAPORE: In 2011, a man began illicitly filming females in their private moments, beginning with his sisters. While he used his mobile phone initially, the man, now 31, started buying spy camera pens for the purpose and widened his net in the course of a decade to include scores of other victims, including his ex-girlfriend, cousin, and students and staff from an education centre he taught at part-time. Investigators who went through his recordings established that they were filmed at the education centre, at the residences of relatives, friends and tutees, and in shopping centre toilets. No fewer than eight victims were identified in his videos. The man, who cannot be named to protect the victims' identities, was handed a jail term of one year and five months on Thursday (Jun 19) over his offences. He pleaded guilty to three counts of voyeurism and two of possessing voyeuristic images or recordings. Another six similar counts were taken into consideration for his sentencing. Apart from teaching part-time at the education centre, the man gave home tuition and had a full-time job as an engineering assistant with an air-conditioning company. PLACED PEN IN TOILET AT EDUCATION CENTRE Between April 2020 and August 2021, while teaching at the education centre, the man placed a spy camera pen in a toilet cubicle at the centre, which was used by both males and females. He recorded one of his tutees, a girl who was only nine years old at the time, relieving herself in a recording that lasted 10 minutes. He later told investigators that he had started recording voyeuristic videos at the education centre in May 2018. FILMED SISTER One occasion where the man filmed one of his sisters occurred on Jun 27, 2021. He switched on a spy camera pen and placed it in recording mode in a toilet before positioning its lens to face the toilet bowl. The sister, then 26, eventually used the toilet, and the man retrieved the pen later. The recording lasted nearly nine minutes and captured the woman relieving herself. CAUGHT BY DOMESTIC HELPER The man's long-time offending came to an end when a vigilant domestic worker spotted one of his pens in a toilet and picked it up with the intention of reporting the matter. On Aug 31, 2021, the man went to a residence to provide tuition to a boy. At about 8pm, he went to use the toilet, intending to set up a spy camera pen to record the domestic helper. He placed the pen on a pipe facing outwards towards the rest of the toilet before returning to his tuition session. He returned to retrieve the pen after the helper had used the toilet, but discovered that the device was missing. The maid had entered the toilet to shower, but as she was suspicious of the man, she decided to shower with the lights off. When she spotted the pen after completing her shower, she quickly got dressed and picked up the pen, wanting to inform the tutee's parents about the device. However, she was spotted holding on to the pen by the man after she exited the toilet. She returned the device to him when he asked her to do so, as she felt scared. The domestic helper eventually still informed the tutee's mother, and the police were called. One of the boy's parents informed the police that an attempt to check the contents of the camera had been made, but that this had been unsuccessful. The parent added: "The teacher said he (dropped) it in the toilet and (tried) to recover it." ACCUSED ARRESTED The man was placed under arrest and escorted to his residence on Sep 1, 2021, where police officers seized electronic devices, including four disassembled spy camera pen parts, one spy camera pen, two laptops and a mobile phone. The man then came clean about filming females in compromising states since 2011, starting with his sisters while they were in the toilet. He said he would typically have at least two functional spy camera pens, and would bring one out with him. He would periodically download the footage recorded and transfer it to his hard disks when they began taking up too much space on his laptops. No fewer than 55 images and recordings of victims – both staff and students at the education centre – were found in the devices, with the recordings being around 10 minutes long on average. Another 24 images and recordings of victims younger than 14 were found. There were 87 images and recordings in total. The prosecution said this was a case of a person abusing his position of trust by planting cameras in the homes of his tutee and family, as well as the education centre. "The filming of voyeuristic videos took place over 10 years. No less than eight victims were identifiable in the voyeuristic videos he took, including two of his students who were younger than 14 years old," it added, arguing for no less than two-and-a-half years' jail. The man's lawyer Kalidass Murugaiyan cited his client's various disorders, namely social anxiety disorder, voyeuristic disorder and major depressive disorder with anxious distress, in mitigation. However, District Judge Tan Jen Tse noted that there was nothing in the man's medical reports to indicate that he had been deprived totally or substantively of his self-control. The man had been aware of his actions and their wrongness, and there was no lack of impulse control, said Judge Tan, pointing to the planning and premeditation involved in the offences. He said that the case showed a "gross abuse of trust" as it took place at venues where children and parents have a right to feel safe. General and specific deterrence still outweigh rehabilitation in this case, indicated Judge Tan, who said that he had still taken into account the man's conditions and how he was actively seeking treatment. Voyeurism carries a jail term of up to two years, a fine, caning, or any combination of these penalties.
CNA
8 hours ago
- CNA
Cyclist did not report gunshot wound at point of admission, says NUH
SINGAPORE: A man who suffered a gunshot wound while cycling in a restricted forested area near Nee Soon Range did not disclose that he had been shot at the point of admission to the National University Hospital (NUH). In response to CNA's queries, an NUH spokesperson said on Friday (Jun 20) that the man admitted himself to its emergency department at 1pm on Jun 15. During triage and the initial clinical assessment, the man 'did not report that he had been shot', NUH noted. Based on the man's account and the circumstances of his admission, there were also 'no overt signs' to indicate a firearm-related injury, it said. As such, 'there was no known basis for a police report to be made at that point', the hospital added. NUH said that the police were notified immediately once the cause of the external wound was 'definitively determined'. 'We are cooperating fully with the police in their investigations and are unable to comment further out of respect for patient confidentiality, and as the case remains under investigation.' On the man's treatment, NUH said he was attended to promptly, based on standard trauma protocols, and was closely monitored. Appropriate care was given based on the team's clinical assessment and the man was assessed to be in a stable condition throughout, it added. THE INCIDENT The man was shot at about 11.40am on Jun 15 while cycling with friends in a forested part of the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, between Upper Seletar and Upper Peirce reservoirs — a restricted area where live-firing activities are conducted. At the time of the incident, an authorised live-firing activity was being conducted by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) at its Nee Soon 500m Range, about 2.3km away. According to the police, the man was taken to the hospital by his friends, and a bullet slug was found lodged in his left lower back. He was in a stable condition after surgery to remove the slug. In the wake of the incident, Singapore's cycling governing body has urged riders to stay on designated trails and follow safety guidelines. The man is currently being investigated for wilful trespass, the police said on Wednesday. Under the Military Manoeuvres Act, unauthorised individuals are not allowed to enter gazetted areas designated for SAF live-firing for their own safety. Wilful trespass refers to a person deliberately trespassing on any grounds that belong to the government, areas designated for public purposes, houses, premises, land, boats or vessels without a satisfactory excuse.
