Latest news with #sexualassault
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- 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.
Globe and Mail
an hour ago
- Globe and Mail
Hockey Canada sex-assault trial spotlights roadblocks and missed opportunities in first London police probe
Eight months after receiving a complaint that a group of former world junior hockey players sexually assaulted a woman in a downtown hotel, London police detective Stephen Newton had reached the end of his investigation. In a phone call with E.M., as the complainant is known because of a publication ban on her name, he told her he didn't have enough evidence to continue his probe. 'I informed her I would be closing the case with no charges,' Mr. Newton, who has since retired, wrote in his notes in February, 2019. His conclusions in the case, and the investigative steps he took to reach them, have since come under intense scrutiny. After it emerged that Hockey Canada, which oversees the world junior team, had quietly settled a lawsuit the woman filed without the players' knowledge, police reopened the case in 2022. This time, a new lead detective reached a different conclusion, and in January, 2024, police laid sexual-assault charges against Michael McLeod, Dillon Dubé, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton and Cal Foote. Police Chief Thai Truong apologized publicly to E.M. and her family for 'the time that it has taken to reach this point.' Each of the players has pleaded not guilty. Closing arguments in their eight-week-long criminal trial concluded in a London courtroom last week. The judge is scheduled to deliver her verdict on July 24. Documents from the 2018 investigation that ended without charges were submitted as evidence in the trial, along with records from the second investigation years later. The Globe and Mail interviewed five experts in sexual violence, policing and law who are not connected with the case about the initial police investigation. Their review of police notes and interviews Mr. Newton conducted with E.M. and the accused players reveals that while he hit roadblocks, he also missed opportunities to dig deeper and left investigative avenues unexplored, raising fundamental questions about how police treat sexual-assault allegations. 'It's emblematic of bigger system failures,' said Melanie Randall, a law professor at Western University and legal expert on sexual assault who reviewed the materials. 'It's a perfect case study of where things go wrong in the criminal justice system with police interviews and investigations.' The London Police Service declined to comment for this story, saying the case is before the courts. Mr. Newton also declined to comment. When Mr. Newton testified at the trial, Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham pressed him repeatedly about apparent gaps in his investigation, and in written submissions asserted he lacked 'a genuine interest in getting at the truth.' 'Detective Newton had made up his mind that there would never be grounds for charges (based on his erroneous or incomplete understanding of consent),' Ms. Cunningham wrote in submissions filed with her closing arguments. Defence lawyers, meanwhile, praised him as a veteran detective whose decision to close the case without charges was correct. David Humphrey, who represents Mr. McLeod, said in court: 'You were familiar with and tried to follow best practices for the investigation of sexual-assault cases?' Mr. Newton replied, 'Yes, I did the best I could.' In Canada, the law requires that consent is voluntary, continuous and given for each sex act. Physically fighting back is not necessary to determine whether a sexual assault has occurred. Rather, the law examines whether an individual has freely indicated 'yes,' without coercion. Prof. Randall said Mr. Newton's interviews with E.M. and the observations he recorded in his notes raise questions about whether he investigated her allegations through this lens. Mr. Newton first learned of the allegations on June 19, 2018, hours after E.M. left the hotel. His records indicate that police had received a call from a Hockey Canada official, after E.M.'s stepfather lodged a complaint with the sports organization. In E.M.'s interviews with Mr. Newton, she described how she met Mr. McLeod in a local bar called Jack's and went with him to his hotel room at the Delta Armouries. She said they had consensual sex, but that she was then forced to engage in sex acts with a group of teammates he had invited in without her knowledge as several others in the room watched. He wrote in his notes that there was no evidence E.M. 'was physically coerced into performing these sex acts' and that 'I explained to [E.M.] that her level of consent is at issue here and that I do not have the evidence needed to demonstrate at court that there was no consent.' At trial, defence lawyers asserted that it was E.M. who asked Mr. McLeod to invite his teammates to the room and that she had demanded sex from the players. Kat Owens, a former Crown attorney who is now interim legal director at the Women's Legal Education and Action Fund in Toronto, said the interview transcripts suggest Mr. Newton failed to home in on what should have been a primary interest. 'What I think is most concerning is the lack of a focus on just the simple question of 'Did you consent?' ' she said. 'Colloquially, only yes means yes. It's not 'no means no,' ' she added. 'It's that you have to be giving an active ongoing consent to each sex act.' E.M. alleged to Mr. Newton that this did not occur, telling him 'they were all like slapping my butt … that was actually starting to hurt so I told them to stop.' Later, she said, 'One just did the splits on my face, just to put it in my face. … It just got really uncomfortable.' These allegations would underpin the Crown's prosecution against Mr. Dubé and Mr. Foote. But Mr. Newton did not pursue them as grounds for potential charges and conceded at trial that when he interviewed Mr. Dubé, he didn't ask the player whether he had touched E.M.'s buttocks. 'Maybe I missed that,' Mr. Newton testified. Intoxication is a factor police consider when investigating sexual-assault allegations, because the law looks not only at whether a complainant consented but also whether they had the capacity to do so. High courts have held that extreme inebriation or periods of unconsciousness can void consent. Profound intoxication does not typically meet the threshold. In many cases, courts have held that there must be evidence that a complainant was unconscious to find that they were unable to consent. When Mr. Newton began his investigation, he wrote in his notebook that he contacted a Hockey Canada official who was independently investigating. The official told him that the events may have involved a woman who 'was extremely drunk and may have blacked out.' However, the transcripts of Mr. Newton's interviews with E.M. suggest incapacity was never a likely path to charges in the case. In an interview on June 22, 2018, Mr. Newton asked E.M., 'Were you conscious the whole time?' 'I don't think I passed out at all,' she replied. Prof. Randall said Mr. Newton should have pivoted toward other aspects of the consent analysis. Instead, the investigative records suggest, E.M.'s level of intoxication continued to be a focal point in Mr. Newton's probe and led, largely, to his decision to shutter it. When Mr. Newton closed his case, he wrote in his notes: 'I would have needed to see outward signs that she was intoxicated such as staggering, severely slurred speech, unconsciousness and evidence that others around her could see that she was too intoxicated to consent.' That assessment suggests the officer had a 'rigid, narrow idea' of how to evaluate consent and the role intoxication plays in that analysis, Prof. Randall said. 'He failed to appreciate some of the dynamics at play,' she said, adding that his focus on whether E.M. was too drunk to consent 'is one of the things he kind of gets stuck on and misunderstands.' When Mr. Newton interviewed E.M., he asked her whether she could have left the hotel room during the alleged sexual assault. 'I don't think I was capable in that state,' she replied, later adding: 'I don't know why I couldn't speak up.' Lori Haskell, a clinical psychologist who studies sexual violence, said E.M.'s response should have prompted the officer to dig deeper and inquire about her state of mind. That did not happen, according to the interview transcripts and officer's notes. 'The right questions were not asked,' Dr. Haskell said. 'A trauma-informed detective, aware of how the brain responds to extreme threat and stress, would consider that her reactions may have been dissociative or that her executive functioning was impaired.' At the criminal trial, E.M. testified that during the alleged assault, she felt as if her mind 'kind of floated to the top corner of the ceiling' and that she watched herself over the ensuing hours. She said she switched into 'autopilot' and performed sex acts she didn't consent to as a way to get through the night. Defence lawyers challenged this, arguing that E.M. was an enthusiastic participant and made up this narrative later because she regretted her actions. A few weeks into the police investigation, E.M. left a voicemail message for Mr. Newton. 'She indicated that she would prefer a female investigator to investigate this matter,' he wrote in his notes. 'I am not sure why that is and she did not make that request to me when I spoke to her on the phone.' Mr. Newton wrote that he brought some female officers into the investigation, but stayed on as lead detective. Dr. Haskell said that wasn't sufficient and E.M.'s request for a female lead detective 'should have been accommodated.' 'Providing a female officer is not simply about comfort,' she said. 'It's a trauma-informed response that recognizes the psychological and emotional safety needs of the complainant.' When London police reopened the case in 2022, it was assigned to a female detective, Lyndsey Ryan, whose probe resulted in the charges that are now before the court. Mr. Newton remarked on several occasions in his notes that E.M. appeared to be wavering on whether she wanted to pursue charges. In July, 2018, he wrote that E.M. 'has repeatedly changed her mind on how she would like to see this investigation proceed. It raises a significant concern on my part that she is being coerced into participating in an investigation that she never wanted to occur in the first place.' Dave Perry, a former investigator with the Toronto police sexual-assault squad, said reticence of a complainant may deter police who don't want to lay charges they can't support in court. But retired criminal defence lawyer John Hill questioned whether Mr. Newton placed too much emphasis on E.M.'s willingness to proceed, noting that it's common for sex-assault complainants to waver. 'I would put no stock in the fact that she vacillated,' Mr. Hill said. Mr. Newton faced considerable barriers in his investigation. Hockey Canada refused to hand over its internal investigative file. And Mr. Newton's position that he was unable to form grounds that a crime had occurred meant that he couldn't seek judicial authorization to compel the sports organization or any other third party to produce evidence. Prosecutors in the case later said he also did not ask the players to voluntarily give him their text-message exchanges. When Det. Ryan reopened the case in 2022, she gained access to the text messages, as well as Hockey Canada's investigative file, which included notes from player interviews. A judge would later block three of the players' interviews from being used in their criminal trial, finding the sports organization obtained them through coercion. Mr. Newton obtained some evidence without court orders, such as the video surveillance from Jack's bar, where E.M. met some of the players. But he conceded at trial that he never watched the footage. If he had, Prof. Randall said, Mr. Newton 'would have seen the amount E.M. was drinking and people buying her drinks at the bar,' as well as men 'encircling her,' which he could have factored into his assessment of her vulnerability. Mr. Newton wrote that his investigation identified 11 players who were in the hotel room with E.M. and that he hoped to speak to all of them. But he only ever sat down with two of them face to face. Some other players gave phone interviews, but most of the rest gave only written statements or would not talk to him at all. The two in-person conversations were with Mr. McLeod and Mr. Formenton and took place in a Toronto lawyer's office. This would have allowed these players to present themselves in a positive light, according to defence lawyer Monte MacGregor, who is not involved in the case. 'It's a defence strategy to get ahead of the curve,' he said, adding that this would allow the subjects to say they were as helpful as possible in meeting with police. Mr. Newton also missed possible opportunities to press the players for information that might have advanced his investigation. During the voluntary interviews, Mr. Newton asked Mr. McLeod about what drew multiple players to his hotel room on the night of the alleged assault: 'Do you get the sense that guys are coming because they know there's a naked girl in the room who's doing sexual favours?' 'I don't know how guys kept showing up,' Mr. McLeod replied. 'Well, I know everyone has phones and devices. … Were you sending any of those messages?' the detective asked. Mr. McLeod said, 'Oh no, I just told the guys I was getting food and there's a girl over there, that's all I said to a few guys.' This was an invitation to follow up further, said Mr. Perry, the retired Toronto police detective. Mr. Newton did not continue his line of questioning. He testified that he did not become aware of a text sent from Mr. McLeod's phone to teammates on the night of the alleged assault that said, 'Who wants to be in a 3 way quick. 209 – mikey' – a key piece of evidence in the Crown's prosecution. 'I think in hindsight, yeah, he could have probed a little deeper,' Mr. Perry said. Farrah Khan: To really change the culture around sexual violence, consent can't be taught as a technicality Andrea Werhun: Porn isn't to blame for sexual assault Shannon Kari: 'Whacking the complainant' continues to be the norm in sexual-assault cases
The Herald
2 hours ago
- The Herald
Three underage girls pregnant: Statutory rape under investigation
North West police are investigating three cases of statutory rape after being alerted to the pregnancies of three girls aged 14, 15 and 16. The girls visited a clinic unaccompanied by their parents, which raised suspicion and concerns from health professionals about possible breaches of duty of care by their guardians, police said. The Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment Act broadens the crime of rape and prohibits acts of consensual sexual violation in some cases as statutory sexual assault. A preliminary investigation revealed all three girls have been involved in consensual intimate relationships and unprotected sex with their boyfriends that led to all three falling pregnant. A police spokesperson said: "The 14-year-old was impregnated by a 17-year-old, the 16-year-old by an 18-year-old and the age of the 15-year-old girl's boyfriend is yet to be verified. "The case dockets will be referred to the public prosecutor for decisions." TimesLIVE
CTV News
7 hours ago
- CTV News
Man sentenced for sexual assault on teen girl
Vancouver Watch A man sentenced for the sexual assault of a 16-year-old girl in Vancouver is already serving time for a deadly hit-and-run.
CTV News
9 hours ago
- CTV News
Man imprisoned for deadly Vancouver hit-and-run sentenced for sex assault
The Law Courts building, which is home to B.C. Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, is seen in Vancouver, on Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck A man already serving time for a deadly Vancouver hit-and-run has been sentenced to an additional three years in prison for an unrelated sexual assault on a 16-year-old girl. Alexandre Romero-Arata was sentenced in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver on Thursday, in line with a joint submission from lawyers for Crown and the defence. Romero-Arata was convicted in 2023 for the 2021 sexual assault on the girl in a Vancouver hotel room. He was 25 at the time but had told her he was closer to her age. During the encounter, he offered the victim alcohol despite knowing about her history of substance abuse. The court heard Romero-Arata slapped the victim's face and breasts and had sex with her without a condom – with the judge ultimately finding the teen did not consent to. While Romero-Arata declined the opportunity to address court, his lawyers say he accepts the jury's finding of guilt, and is remorseful and apologetic. 'I think it's important to acknowledge that our client's remorse is something that the judge found to be mitigating in passing sentence,' Romero-Arata's lawyer Sarah Leamon told CTV News outside court on Thursday. 'I think he's had time to reflect, and in reviewing the victim impact statements, he has expressed his remorse.' Romero-Arata currently has two years remaining on a five year sentence for criminal negligence causing death for a hit and run. Exactly three years ago, 24-year-old Irish tech worker Eoghan Byrne was killed on West 4th Avenue and Arbutus Street. Cellphone video that emerged after the fact showed Romero-Arata bragging on camera about speeding as he went on an alcohol-fueled joyride through Kitsilano. In that case, the court heard he ran multiple red lights and hit speeds of up to 152 km/h. But his lawyer insists he can turn his life around. 'The court certainly considered his rehabilitative prospects and did consider that to be mitigating, in terms of something that was brought into their decision to pass sentence,' Leamon said. Romero-Arata will also be required to submit a DNA sample and register as a sex offender.
