UCL student accused of raping 10 women takes the stand: A timeline of the trial so far

TW: Rape, drugs

UCL PhD student, Zhenhao Zou, is on trial for the drugging and rape of 10 women in total, between September 2019 and May 2023. During which time, he studied a Master’s and a PhD in engineering at University College London (UCL). He denies all charges.

Zou, a Chinese national, is accused of carrying out the attacks in both London and China. Two women have accused him of raping them in his student accommodation in London. Inner London Crown Court also heard how he filmed the attacks to keep as “souvenirs”.

However, the remaining rape allegations the UCL student is on trial for are believed to have taken place in China except one, based on the alleged attacks found on Zou’s devices. All but one of the women involved have not been identified. 

Zou informs court he enjoys ‘timestop’ pornography featuring sleeping women

According to the Guardian, when questioned about the video material he watched, on the stand Zhenhao Zou informed the court he liked “time stop” pornography, in which “the females are passive and unresponsive during sex”, a definition which was agreed upon by both the defence and prosecution. 

His barrister, Mark Cotter KC, enquired why he preferred that type of sexual material, Zou stated: “I like it because the girl appears to be still and quiet when they are having sex.”

Cotter then asked Zou: “What about being asleep?”

He replied: “Yes, that’s my favourite type. But I could not find that.”

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Zou denies the 11 counts of rape, three counts of voyeurism, 12 counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image, one count false imprisonment and eight counts having a controlled drug with intent to commit a sexual offence. He gave evidence with the help of an interpreter, speaking in Mandarin.

UK police ‘blocked from pursuing case in China’

Metropolitan Police Detective Constable Jack Woods informed the court that they “were never granted permission to go and investigate in China”, despite reports that seven of the alleged attacks took place there.

Constable Woods was also asked whether Chinese authorities are investigating the case, to which he responded: “I can’t say.”

The prosecutor Catherine Farrelly said at the Inner London Crown Court: “To the outside world, he undoubtedly presents as a smart and charming young man. However, as you know from the indictment in this case which contains 35 allegations against him, the prosecution says that he is also a persistent sexual predator, a voyeur and a rapist.

“The prosecution case at this trial is that he would meet women, he would stupefy them either with drink or drugs, and once they were significantly under the influence of drink or drugs, he would then rape them.”

University College London, where Zou was a PhD student via Unsplash

Witness statement from a victim is presented to the court

In a witness statement, PC Tijani said one of the women who came forward went for drinks with a man who “encouraged her to drink more” at a previous party.

BBC News reported that the statement added that the woman went back to Zou’s flat, where she felt “uncomfortable” and tried to leave, however Zou dragged her by her clothes back towards his bedroom, then made her drink vodka.

She told the court: “He forced me to stay at his place that night after a great amount of alcohol. My emotion was not stable. So under the extreme loss of my emotional control, an agreement we had was either you let me go or give me money so that I can stay.”

She continued to explain that she asked Zou to give her the equivalent of £11,000 if she stayed in the flat, however she said she didn’t actually expect him to pay her.

She also noted that this didn’t give him permission to have sex with her, adding: “He raped me.”

During a police interview in February 2024, the women who cannot be named for legal reasons, said: “I felt very disgusting but I had no strength to fight him off. I can’t even remember when this finished because I had already passed out.” The trial heard how she then claimed to the UCL student proceeded to rape her when she was unconscious. 

Police discovered videos of the woman next to Zou’s bed, which were provided as evidence in court. The woman can be seen screaming, and trying to leave several times, but Zou kept pushing her back onto the bed.

The woman told the court of her struggles after the incident: “I could not sleep, I could not eat, I felt disgusting. Physically, it was much worse than mentally.

“I didn’t know what happened that night whether it was a sexual assault or not.

“Later I became more and more angry that he did it to me without my permission.”

She told the jury that she realised that “what he did at his place was intentional”.

Inner London Crown Court via Creative Commons

Zou informs the trial he enjoys ‘rape role play’

Zou told the jury he met the woman in April 2022, on a dating app called Soul. He said that they discussed their sexual preferences, and she said she liked uniform role play.

At the trial, the UCL student explained: “We specifically discussed the kinds of role play I like, which was rape role play.”

In six of the videos shown to the court, the women have their eyes closed.

Zou’s barrister asked: “Why were their eyes closed?”

He replied: “I had asked them to do that.” 

Adding: “Because I have this kind of preferences. I have sex with them when they seem to be asleep.”

Zou noted that this was consensual, and had informed the women beforehand that he would be filming.

He also claimed he had prevented the woman from leaving because “her state at that time I didn’t think was safe for her or for other people.”

Zou reveals his series of cosmetic procedures

During the trial, the UCL student also discussed a series of cosmetic procedures he underwent in his early 20s.

This included hair transplants, eyelid operations, teeth adjustments, and “fat fillings” inserted into his chin. When asked to expand further, he explained to the jurors: “They extracted some fat from other parts of my body, modified them, and injected the fat into my chin.”

He added that he wore make-up “all the time”, noting that he wore it because he “looked better”.

When asked if wearing make-up was common among male students, Zou said: “I’m not sure. In my house at that time, two other male students also used make-up but they used less.”

Zou’s drug usage discussed in court

Zou explained how his drug usage began, stating it was after he started university in London in 2019, where he came into contact with drugs such as ecstasy.

He said: “Later I came into contact with white powder – that was cocaine – then ketamine powder and then e-liquid.

“I went to a party, we were drinking, someone was snorting. This person said it was nice and asked me to try, so I tried.”

The student told the court that the Xanax, MDMA, and Ketamine, which were recovered by police from his student accommodation were for personal use, when he “couldn’t fall asleep and [he] was anxious.” He insisted no one else used the drugs.

Zou also said the Viagra tablets in his bedroom were also his, and purchased in China.

UCL releases statement regarding the former student

UCL released a statement regarding the allegations: “We are aware that a former student, Zhenhao Zou, is facing a number of serious sexual assault charges and these have been reported in the media.

“We understand allegations of this nature are deeply distressing, and our priority is to support our students, alumni, staff, and wider community.   

“Due to the risk of prejudicing criminal proceedings, we are unable to say anything about the case at this time.”

The trial continues.

For any UCL students or staff members seeking support, you can find information here.

Featured image (before edits): Supplied/Unsplash