Mum of student found dead in balcony ‘body box’ tells jury daughter would tell her ‘every day’ she was ‘safe’

The mother of a woman allegedly murdered by her flatmate and found stuffed in a “body box” on a balcony has told a court her daughter would tell her every day she was “safe”. Rongmei Yan, the mother of slain student Qiong Yan, was the last witness to be called by the Crown on the second day of the trial of her daughter’s alleged murderer, Yang Zhao. Mr Zhao is alleged to have murdered Ms Yan, 29, in September 2020. The Chinese national’s body was found stuffed in a large toolbox on the balcony of a unit in Hamilton in July 2021 – some 10 months after Mr Zhao allegedly killed her. He has pleaded not guilty to the charge. The Crown contends Mr Zhao went on to use Ms Yan’s phone during those 10 months to impersonate her – gaining access to her apps and banking details. Mr Zhao allegedly convinced Ms Yan’s mother Rongmei to transfer $400,000 to her daughter’s account and moved $200,000 from her account to his. The court was told Mr Zhao allegedly sent multiple messages to the slain woman’s friends and family during this time and lied to Queensland and NSW Police about Ms Yan’s whereabouts. Andrew Hoare, Mr Zhao’s defence barrister, has urged the jury to consider the inconsistencies his client’s recollection of Ms Yan’s death to police. During his brief address, he emphasised his client had only pleaded guilty to a charge of misconduct with a corpse and was still presumed to be innocent on the charge of murder, due to his not guilty plea. On Tuesday afternoon, Rongmei Yan gave evidence she primarily communicated with her daughter over the app WeChat for the duration of her time in Australia. “Basically we had this arrangement, everyday she would tell me that she was safe,” Rongmei said.They would communicate over text and video, she explained. The court was told Qiong at first asked her mother for money during the Covid-19 pandemic, arranging to pay her back once she had sold her Porsche. Rongmei Yan gave evidence she at first did not approve of Qiong’s suggestion to trade on the stock market. However she changed her stance during the pandemic and allowed her daughter to use her account, so she could see all transactions made. In September 2020, Qiong asked her mother for money to “purchase a house”, Rongmei said. “Over the next six or seven months, did she ask for large sums of money again?” Crown prosecutor Chris Cook asked. “Yes,” Rongmei answered. Mr Cook asked: “When you were sending those messages after September, you didn’t know who was on the other end of the phone?” “No,” Rongmei said. Earlier in the day, Senior Constable Zambesi gave evidence of his attempts to establish contact with Ms Yan at the time a missing person’s report was filed in April 2021. He told the court he spoke to Mr Zhao several times over the phone and examined the movement of money from Ms Yan’s accounts that same month. Ms Yan’s mother Rongmei last spoke her daughter in September 2020 over Facetime, but there was “sporadic contact” until the missing person’s report was filed, Senior Constable Zambesi said. “During this time she formed the belief the person she was speaking to on WeChat was not her daughter,” he explained. A video recording purportedly sent to Rongmei by her daughter showed a female’s hand petting a cat, the court was told. “This cat was consistent with one owned by Ms Yan,” Senior Constable Zambesi said. He gave evidence Queensland Police established contact with Mr Zhao in July 2021 while he was in Sydney. Senior Constable Zambesi said he recalled Mr Zhao speaking to police upon his arrest, where he allegedly asked if he had to “tell anyone” when given the opportunity to speak to the Chinese consulate. He allegedly said: “There is no story, I don’t regret it.” Mr Zhao allegedly asked if he would “get the death penalty” – only to be told Australia did not have such a punishment – to which he then asked “what if I want it?” “Mr Zhao asked this: ‘How convincing was I? Was I good? Did you know?’” Mr Cook read from a transcript. “Yes,” Senior Constable Zambesi responded. Another officer, Detective Sergeant Tammy Storey, gave evidence of her contact with Mr Zhao during initial police investigations. In a recorded phone call with her, Mr Zhao can be heard telling the detective he threw out Ms Yan’s items and claiming she was in Melbourne. He also provides Sergeant Storey with the address he was staying at in Mascot, NSW. Sergeant Storey gave evidence of going into Mr Zhao’s apartment in Hamilton and noticing the black toolbox stored on the balcony. “It drew my attention because at the time I thought there were little incense bags on the locks,” she said. “It turned out to be prayer bags.” The court was told Sergeant Storey and officers opened the box and “immediately” smelled a dead body, noticing a human foot inside. The trial continues.