Court reveals possible sexual motive in Yanfei Bao murder case

Warning: This article discusses details of sexual assault.

There may have been a sexual element to an attack on a Christchurch estate agent whose body was found just over a year after she disappeared, the High Court has been told.

Chinese national Tingjun Cao, 53, is accused of killing Yanfei Bao on July 19, 2023, the day she disappeared.

He pleaded not guilty.

Bao went missing in July last year and her body was found on farmland near Christchurch just over a year later.

Corona opened her business this afternoon.

Crown prosecutor Cameron Stewart told the court that Tingjun Cao met Bao when a relative bought a house from Yanfei Bao a few months before she disappeared.

Cao paid some of the money for the property and dealt with Bao.

After that, they continued to communicate, and Bao tried to help him find a job.

On the day Bao went missing, the Crown said Tingjun Cao contacted Bao and said he had a friend interested in buying the house.

She said she had properties that might be of interest and arranged to meet Cao and his friend later that day at Hornby’s home.

Stewart said the Crown’s case is that Cao stabbed Bao several times at that house, dragged her body through the house and put her in the trunk of his car.

He said a photo obtained from Cao’s phone included an image of what the Crown says is Bao’s dead body, showing her topless and blood on her body.

Stewart said the Crown does not have to prove motive, but the photograph may indicate a sexual element to the offender.

Defense opening statements

In his opening statement, Tsao’s lawyer Joshua McLeod said the Crown’s evidence was insufficient to prove the murder charge.

“This case is not simple, the evidence is not simple, and more importantly, what you do with the evidence is not simple, and what the evidence tells you is not simple.”

McLeod said the only thing that is simple is Cao’s position, which is that he is not guilty.

He said Cao doesn’t speak English so he would need to translate the evidence and asked the jury to be patient.

McLeod said the Crown’s evidence is much messier than they want it to look.

“This lack of clarity can only lead to dilution of their case. You will need to look at the police investigation as a whole.

“How they approached this case, how it developed and when. Who did they look at and why, and how wide a net did they cast? What evidence can you really rely on?”

The trial is expected to hear from more than 70 witnesses over the next five to six weeks, including Yanfei Bao’s partner Paul Gooch, who is expected to take the stand tomorrow.

Where to get help:

Sexual violence

New Zealand Police

Victim support 0800 842 846

Rape Crisis 0800 88 33 00

Rape Prevention Education

Empowerment Trust Fund

HELP Call 24/7 (Auckland): 09 623 1700, (Wellington): 04 801 6655 – press 0 in the menu.

Safe to Speak: 24-hour confidential helpline for survivors, support for people and those with harmful sexual behaviour: 0800044334

Surviving men of Aotearoa

Survivors Network of Priests Abused (SNAP) 022 344 0496