Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police
A senior judge has praised the Metropolitan Police Service following one of the most challenging and complex investigations conducted by detectives to bring a serial rapist to justice.
The case demonstrates the Met’s ongoing commitment to keeping women and girls safe and work to eradicate sexual violence, largely at the hands of predatory men.
Zhenhao Zou, 28 (20.02.97), of Churchyard Row, Elephant and Castle, was convicted of drugging and raping women both in the UK and China in March 2025. A jury found him guilty of 28 offences in total, including counts of voyeurism, possession of an extreme pornographic image, possession of a drug to commit a sexual offence and false imprisonment.
On Thursday, 19 June, he was sentenced at Inner London Crown Court to a life sentence. He will have to serve a minimum of 24 years.
The lengthy sentence reflects justice for the women who are victim-survivors of Zou and is testament to the extraordinary lengths gone to by investigators, who left no stone unturned in their pursuit to take a dangerous sexual predator off the streets.
Following the sentencing hearing, officers paid tribute to the brave victim-survivors, who have always remained at the very heart of the investigation.
During the sentencing hearing, the judge commended Met detectives DC Jack Woods and DC Oliver Colville, while paying tribute to the whole prosecution team.
Commander Kevin Southworth, of the Metropolitan Police Service, said: “First and foremost, our thoughts have always been with the courageous victim-survivors of Zou’s heinous and predatory crimes.
“Thanks to the remarkable efforts of our officers and prosecutors, a dangerous and cowardly offender has been handed a life sentence. I hope the fact Zou can no longer harm others serves as a small amount of comfort to the women who have suffered immeasurably.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to stress that our investigation remains open and we continue to appeal to anyone who may think they have been a victim of Zou. Please come forward and speak with our team – we will treat you with empathy, kindness and respect.”
The investigation
Before his arrest in January 2024, Zou was a student at University College London (UCL) since 2019 and prior to that studied at Queen’s University Belfast.
Zou used social media platforms and dating websites to target victim-survivors – all of which are believed to be of Chinese heritage. He lured women to his accommodation under the pretence of having a drink or studying and then plied them with drinks laced with drugs.
He filmed himself as he raped the woman as they lost consciousness.
Met investigators watched hundreds of these disturbing videos as they built a case of evidence against Zou. It was after analysis of this graphic and disturbing material that it became apparent that he had not only committed offences in London, but also in his home country of China too.
The prosecution team were unable to identify all of the victim-survivors captured, so relied on this video evidence to present a compelling case during the trial. Officers also meticulously pulled together over 4000 documents to leave no doubt in the jury’s mind about Zou’s guilt.
Alongside this, they downloaded around six and a half terabytes worth of data from Zou’s phones and laptops, which included around nine million messages. This is the equivalent to 1,664 hours of footage and is one of the biggest cases the Met’s digital forensics lab has ever dealt with.
Met officers spent months trawling through messages to understand Zou’s pattern of offending, scrupulously translating them into English from Simplified Chinese.
The appeal
Following Zou’s conviction, investigators shared that they believed Zou’s offending was much wider than the eleven rapes he was convicted of. They made a direct appeal to unidentified victim-survivors to come forward and seek specialist support.
Securing justice for the victim-survivors of Zou and putting him behind bars has been at the forefront of detective’s minds since the start of the investigation. To secure a conviction through a fair trial, officers made the decision not to appeal for further victim-survivors ahead of conviction. Sharing specific information relating to his offending may have caused the case to collapse, leaving Zou to offend again. By appealing post-conviction, the Met was able to share the fullest details to support potential victim-survivors coming forward.
Since the appeal in March 2025, 24 women have made reports to the police. These continue to be investigated thoroughly by a dedicated team of officers. Following the sentencing hearing, the team will continue to liaise with the Crown Prosecution Services around potential future charges.
Detectives continue to keep an open mind about the identities of unidentified victim-survivors but have been keen to speak to women from the Chinese student community – they may have been living in London between 2019-2024 or met Zou while he was living in China.
So far, investigators have not received any reports from women who met Zou while he was living in Belfast but remain in contact with Police Service Northern Ireland. They continue to encourage any current or former Northern Ireland residents who have concerns to come forward and speak to officers.
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.
“We have always been determined to seek justice for both the unidentified and identified victims in this case. We used an evidence-led approach that relied on the video recordings of Zou to ensure this dangerous predator faced justice.
“The prosecution team worked with the police for over a year to pick apart an unprecedented amount of footage and web chats showing his meticulous planning and the horrifying execution of his crimes.
“Following the police appeal, we will continue to review and consider any further charges to ensure that he is held accountable and seek justice for all victims.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to once again express my heartfelt thanks to the courageous women who came forward to report Zou’s horrific crimes. They have been incredibly strong and brave – there is no doubt that their evidence helped us to secure his conviction, and the life sentence handed to him today.”
How to contact the police and independent support agencies:
Reports relating to Zhenhao Zou can be made online via the Major Incident Public Portal (MIPP): https://mipp.police.uk/operation/01MPS25X38-PO1 . The MIPP is also available in Simplified Chinese https://mipp.police.uk/operation/01MPS25X38-PO2, so it is as accessible as possible for potential victim-survivors.
If you wish to speak to Met detectives or make a report relating to Zou, you can also contact police via email on survivors@met.police.uk
You can also make a report to police by calling 101 from within the UK, quoting reference 2904/04FEB25.
If you live in England or Wales and have been affected by this case and would like to seek support from specialist agencies, please contact the independent charity Rape Crisis via their 24/7 Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Line or call them on 0808 500 2222. Specially trained staff are there to listen, answer questions and offer emotional support.
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