Remorseless killer who murdered flatmate, stuffed body in ‘body box’ over ‘naked greed’ jailed for life

A remorseless killer who murdered his flatmate for money – before stuffing her body in a “body box” in a “despicable” act – has been jailed for life. An emotionless Yang Zhao shook his head during his sentencing at Brisbane Supreme Court after a jury found him guilty of murdering his flatmate, Qiong Yan, 29, in September 2020. Ms Yan’s decomposing body was found stored in a large toolbox on the balcony of a Hamilton apartment in northeast Brisbane – which was rented by Zhao and Ms Yan – in July 2021. Zhao, 30, had pleaded guilty to misconduct with a corpse – admitting he put Ms Yan’s body inside the toolbox after she died – but denied causing her death. A jury of eight men and four women returned their verdict on Tuesday after less than two hours of deliberating. Rongmei Yan, Ms Yan’s mother, cried upon the verdict being delivered, while Zhao sat emotionless in the dock. Zhao was sentenced to life in prison, and will not be eligible for parole after serving 22 years behind bars. During his sentencing on Tuesday afternoon, Supreme Court Justice Martin Burns was scathing of Zhao’s conduct in not only killing Ms Yan, but also in his treatment of her body. He said Zhao advanced a “shamelessly” advanced a false narrative surrounding Ms Yan’s death. “Ms Yan had no family in Australia but remained in close contact with her mother in China,” Justice Burns said. “She thought you were her friend. She also trusted you.” Zhao learned Ms Yan’s mother had received a significant sum of money from compensation after being relocated from her home in China in August 2020. “Whether on whim or as part of a plan hatched by you over a longer period of time, you decided to murder Ms Yan to gain access to those funds, as well as money in Ms Yan’s accounts and perhaps ownership of a vehicle worth just over $300,000,” Justice Burns said. “This you did in the most brutal of ways.” After killing Ms Yan, Zhao embarked on a long course of conduct in which he “acted in the most despicable” of ways. “Within hours of her death, and with her body still laying on the floor of your apartment, you rifled through her personal papers to gather the information necessary to learn the password to her mobile telephone. “You continued to pose as Ms Yan in WeChat conversations with her mother, her former husband, and with police,” Justice Burns continued. “You did this to keep up the pretence that Ms Yan was alive and to gain access to her money.” Justice Burns said the singular motive for Ms Yan’s murder was “naked greed” – as Zhao “rapidly dissipated” with $500,000 of money obtained from Ms Yan’s account and from her mother, Rongmei. Zhao’s act left Rongmei Yan destitute, the court was told. “During the intervening periods you engaged in complex subterfuge about which there was a great deal of evidence called at the trial,” Justice Burns said. He said Zhao disposed of most of Ms Yan’s personal possessions, advancing a story she had “moved to Melbourne”. “You acted with callous disregard for the life you took,” Justice Burns said. Crown prosecutor Chris Cook had earlier urged Justice Burns to extend the usual non-parole period for Zhao, citing his “senseless murder” of Ms Yan and “poor treatment” of her body after her death. Mr Cook said Zhao murdered Ms Yan “for selfish reasons”, financially benefited from her death and had no remorse. The court was told Zhao’s visa expired in 2021. Staring down her daughter’s killer, Rongmei Yan spoke of her “endless emotional trauma” as a result of Zhao’s actions. “It’s very hard to express this kind of trauma through words,” Rongmei, aided by an interpreter, told the court. She spoke of how she still could not accept that her daughter was gone and was “still full of anger and hatred … deep down”. “Everyday I live in a deep abyss … when I heard the news my daughter had been murdered, I suddenly lost the capacity to walk,” Rongmei said. “After several months of acupuncture treatment I gradually recovered. “Everyday I live in fear. I cannot imagine the person I had been talking to since September 2020 … was not my daughter.” Rongmei said her daughter had already become a “skeleton” by the time she realised who she was talking to. “I really just blame myself for failing to protect her,” she said. Reading from Rongmei’s second victim impact statement, Mr Cook said Zhao’s impact on society was “unmeasurable”. “He sealed my beloved daughter’s body in a box and left it,” Mr Cook said. Through the statement, Rongmei urged Justice Burns to impose a hefty penalty on Zhao. Throughout the trial, the Crown contended Zhao had a financial motive to kill Ms Yan due to his hefty trading and gambling losses. The Crown contended Zhao took his flatmate’s phone after the murder, using it to pose as Ms Yan and moving thousands of dollars from her bank accounts to his own. It was alleged he convinced Rongmei Yan to transfer more than $400,000 to her daughter’s accounts. It was further alleged Zhao kept up the appearance Ms Yan was alive by using her WeChat account to message friends and family, even telling NSW Police looking into a missing person’s report on Ms Yan that she was “fine”. Zhao himself gave evidence during the trial, telling the jury the pair were using nitrous oxide canisters on the night Ms Yan died. He said he noticed Ms Yan was unresponsive and “cold to touch” – leading him to panic over fears he would be in “trouble” for supplying the drugs to her. His evidence was picked apart for days by Mr Cook, who called him a “liar”, “coward” and someone only interested in self-preservation. Andrew Hoare KC, Zhao’s defence barrister, urged the jury to view his client’s statements with scepticism, calling them “tales” told by a man who panicked. “Mr Zhao has lied … but that doesn’t make him a murderer,” Mr Hoare said. He argued the version Zhao gave police – that he strangled Ms Yan – was fabricated under extreme stress and fear of the death penalty.