Zhe Wang, 31, was found dead at her flat in Hither Green late at night on March 20 last year.
Joshua Michals, a 24-year-old American student, admits stabbing her but claims he did it accidentally while defending himself from her as she attacked him with a knife.
“This case concerns the killing of a young woman by a man whom she had only been seeing for a few short months. This was a brutal and savage attack, as the evidence of her injuries and from the scene plainly shows, she was killed in her own bedroom,” prosecutor Henrietta Paget said.
‘Accused of ruining her life’
Prosecutor Henrietta Paget said the pair met in September at the beginning of the university term, swapping numbers, chatting and flirting.
By early October messages exchanged between the two indicated the pair were physically intimate but had not had intercourse, the jury were told.
Zhe was a self-confessed “germaphobe” and had even spent days cleaning her flat before moving in.
When Zhe and Michals discussed having sex together she made it clear she does not to sleep with anyone unless she is sure that they are not carrying any sexually transmitted infection, the court heard.
Michals provided negative results but they were from some time earlier so she asked him to get a test again, telling him she is preparing a “surprise” for him.
The pair eventually met for sex at her flat in February, after which messages revealed both were concerned about the risk of pregnancy so with some reluctance she agreed to take the morning after pill.
She later experienced some unpleasant side-effects from the pill and found a genital rash, Ms Paget said.
Ms Paget said: “She becomes concerned that this is associated with a sexually transmitted infection.
“She regrets having broken her own rules, both by failing to insist on up to date STD tests, by acquiescing in some of the sexual activity without a condom and by agreeing to take the pill against her better judgment.”
Zhe asked him to take another test – which Michals did not want to do – so against his resistance she accused him of ruining her life and threatened to ask the university for help, Ms Paget said.
“And that brings us right up to date: to the night of March 20 last year, when Mr. Michals had asked to come to see her to discuss it in person,” Ms Paget said.
The night of the killing
On the day of Zhe’s death, Michals was dropped off by an Uber at 7.17pm.
He was in the flat for 40 minutes, before ordering an Uber home at 7.59pm and arriving home 20 minutes later.
Three hours later, at 11.08pm, he phoned 999 from his home and told the operator there was a very serious incident in Zhe’s flat and she was not breathing.
During the 999 call Michals had told the operator Zhe was injured “to the head” and made comments that it would be too late to help her, the jury were told.
He told the operator that Zhe had attacked him but said he only had a few scratches.
When Michals was arrested he was asked if he understood why, at which point he replied: “Yeah, but it’s not what it seems.”
Michals was interviewed by the police on the night of his arrest but he declined to answer any questions or give any account as to what happened.
Ms Paget said the Crown understands that Michals accepts killing Zhe but says he did so by accident whilst defending himself from her as she attacked him with a knife.
Describing the moment police found Zhe at her flat, Ms Paget said: “Officers found the lights off but light from the hallway allowed them to see that Ms. Wang was lying face up on the floor next to the bed with her feet towards the door and her head up against the floor length curtains.
“Her face was coated with dried blood. The carpet was saturated with blood, which had pooled around her head, neck and shoulders. Dried blood was noted on the walls and carpet.”
Zhe was pronounced dead at the scene, with officers noting she had been stabbed at least twice to the face.
A post mortem found that Zhe died as a result of a sustained physical assault which resulted in blood loss from stab wounds to the head as well as an act of compression to the neck.
The knife used to kill Zhe was never discovered and the prosecution’s case is that Michals also disposed of her phone.
Ms Praget said: “The prosecution case rests on the combination of evidence here: Ms. Wang’s injuries, the evidence from the scene and Mr. Michals’ behaviour afterwards.
“All of that evidence, say the Crown, demonstrates that it was he who flew into a rage and attacked her.
“His first instinct in the hours that followed – far from doing anything at all to help her – was to cover his tracks in an effort to save himself.”
Zhe Wang
Ms Paget said Zhe was studying for an MA in Creative Writing and Education at Goldsmiths University, and it was her ambition to be a teacher.
“Ms Wang was, by all accounts, a quiet and gentle person. Her tutor and fellow students describe her as funny, very organised and well turned out. She took care to look after her health and had a clear sense of order and routine.
“She was known to be close to her family. She was a talented writer who took her studies seriously and was keen to talk about her writing, wanting to complete a PhD and return to China.”
The trial continues.
