Zhang Hong Jie (1979–2004), also known as Steffi Zhang was a 24-year-old

International student International students, or foreign students, are students who undertake all or part of their tertiary education in a country other than their own and move to that country for the purpose of studying. In 2019, there were over 6 million internati ...

, studying communications at the

University of Canberra The University of Canberra (UC) is a public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is within walking distance of Westfield Belconnen, and from Canberra's Civic Centre. U ...

in Australia. Her body was found in January 2005 in her

Belconnen The District of Belconnen () is one of the original eighteen districts of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), used in land administration. The district is subdivided into 27 divisions (suburbs), sections and blocks. The district of Belconn ...

flat Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...

following her murder in June 2004. The circumstances of her death and length of time before her body was discovered made national headlines, sparking debate over the duty of care Australian universities provide to foreign students.

Murder and discovery

Following an argument between the couple on 10 June 2004, Steffi was strangled by her ex-boyfriend Zhang Long, using a computer cable wrapped twice around her neck and tied at the front. Long rolled her body, which he doused with insecticide and perfume in blankets, before returning home to Dalian in China. In Dalian, Long checked into hotels during the Australian academic term so his parents would believe he was still away studying. He posed as Steffi online sending emails to her friends and family to avoid suspicion that she was missing. The body was not discovered until 12 January 2005, after neighbours alerted police to a smell coming from Zhang's flat. Identification of the decomposed remains took six weeks, with

ACT Police ACT Policing is the portfolio of the Australian Federal Police (AFP) responsible for providing policing services to the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The Australian Capital Territory Police was an independent police force responsible for ...

working with counterparts in China to locate family members and match DNA samples.

Investigation and arrest

Despite initial reluctance to publicly name him, police quickly identified Zhang Long as their only suspect for the murder. On 27 February 2005 a warrant was issued in the ACT Magistrates court for Long's arrest. With the encouragement of his father, Long surrendered to authorities in China in March, claiming that Steffi's death was accidental. He claimed that during an argument on 9 June 2004, Zhang Hong Jie had struck him on the head with a hammer. In retaliation, he struck her twice with the same hammer and then they grabbed at each other's throats, until she stopped moving. He then claimed he wrapped a computer cable around her neck to drag her body onto a mattress and covered her with a quilt. The coroner would later find that Steffi died of strangulation caused by the cable. In April 2005, Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory

Jon Stanhope Jonathan Donald Stanhope (born 29 April 1951) is a former Australian politician who was Labor Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory from 2001 to 2011. Stanhope represented the Ginninderra electorate in the ACT Legislative Assemb ...

sought Long's

extradition Extradition is an action wherein one jurisdiction delivers a person accused or convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, over to the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforcement procedure between the two jurisdi ...

to face charges over the murder. The Federal Government declined to make a formal request to China in the absence of any standing arrangements between the two countries. Long would remain in custody without being charged for several years.

Death penalty controversy

As of November 2005, Long remained in custody in China but had still not been charged with her murder. Under Chinese law, this would be possible despite the crime occurring overseas. However the

ACT Government The Government of the Australian Capital Territory, also referred to as the Australian Capital Territory Government or ACT Government, is the executive authority of the Australian Capital Territory, one of the territories of Australia. The lea ...

led by Jon Stanhope expressed reluctance to co-operate with Chinese authorities without a guarantee that any conviction relying on evidence provided by ACT police would not result in the death penalty.https://www.hansard.act.gov.au/hansard/6th-assembly/2005/PDF/20051116.pdf The Federal Government of Australia pressured the Australian Capital Territory to cooperate with the Chinese investigation into the murder, as written by a letter from

John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

Stanhope in May 2005, and another request from Justice Minister Chris Ellison in June. The ACT government does not want to because it may mean Zhang would face a

firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French ''fusil'', rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are ...

in China if convicted. The ACT Liberal opposition wanted the Chief Minister to use his Chinese contacts to bring Zhang to 'justice'.

Aftermath

After the killing, the University of Canberra introduced changes to their policy for international students and management.

References

External links