Slim chance of ever finding Chinese scholar's body

Michael Tarm, Ap Legal Affairs Writer Updated 5:05 pm CDT, Friday, July 19, 2019

PEORIA, Ill. (AP) — Authorities in Illinois have suggested that the remains of a slain 26-year-old scholar from China may never be found despite a vow from prosecutors after her killer was sentenced to life in prison this week that the search will continue.

Brendt Christensen, a former doctoral student in physics at the University of Illinois, abducted Yingying Zhang in 2017 from a bus stop. Prosecutors say he beat her to death at his off-campus apartment, decapitated her and carried her away in a large duffel bag.

. . .

In secret recordings of Christensen made by his girlfriend for the FBI, he sounded confident he successfully disposed of Zhang's body, saying without offering details: "She's never going to be found. ... She's gone forever."

With his background in science, he would have been more capable than most of destroying remains.

Evidence at his trial included a scientific article Christensen downloaded before the killing called "Beyond the Grave — Understanding Human Decomposition." It provides detailed explanations of how bacteria, moisture and other factors can speed up decomposition.

A lack of a body didn't pose a major obstacle for prosecutors at the trial because they had blood and DNA evidence from Christensen's apartment corroborating Zhang was killed in his apartment.

https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Slim-chance-of-ever-finding-Chinese-scholar-s-body-14109135.php



Yingying Zhang



Yingying Zhang



Yingying Zhang

Rest in Peace.