More than 20 women come forward in appeal for victims of rapist Zhenhao Zou

Zhenhao Zou at the time of his arrest Credit: PA

The Met Police say 23 women have come forward to make reports following an appeal for victims of the convicted rapist Zhenhao Zou.

Despite this number, police believe many more victims could exist and are urging more people to speak up. At the time of Zou's conviction, prosecutors said they had evidence to suggest there could be more than 50 potential victims who had not been traced.

Police did not confirm if the 23 women who have so far come forward have been identified as part of this group of 50.

Police are renewing their appeal for victims of Zhenhao Zou to come forward. Credit: PA

Zou, a Chinese PHD student who had been living in London, was convicted of raping ten women in March 2025. The jury unanimously found him guilty of all charges after hearing evidence he had committed these crimes both in China and the UK.

Only two of the ten women he was charged with raping were identified at the time of the investigation and trial.

The student first moved to Belfast in 2017 to study mechanical engineering at Queen’s University before heading to London in 2019 to do a master’s degree and then a PhD at UCL. There has been no evidence so far of Zou offending in Northern Ireland. Among the 23 women who have so far come forward some currently live in the UK whilst others have made the reports from China and the rest of the world.

The Met's Commander Kevin Southworth described the reports as "a significant step" and thanked both the women who have come forward so far and those who have helped spread awareness.

Zou was found guilty in March of 11 counts of rape, three counts of voyeurism, ten counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image, 1 count of false imprisonment and three counts of committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence.

The court was told Zhenhao Zou kept possessions of his victims which police discovered during their investgation. Credit: PA

Police continue to collect evidence as they put together a file to be submitted to prosecutors for further consideration at the time of Zou's sentencing in June 2025.

If you wish to speak to Met detectives or make a report relating to Zou, you can also contact police via email on survivors@met.police.uk.

You can also make a report to police by calling 101 from within the UK, quoting reference 2904/04FEB25.

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