A wealthy American student is facing life behind bars for stabbing his "germaphobic" girlfriend twice in the face and strangling her to death after she accused him of giving her an STI. Joshua Michals, 26, from Chicago, is accused of killing Zhe Wang, 31, in her Hither Green flat.
Zhe Wang was found dead in her bedroom, lying in a pool of blood, on March 20, 2024. Michals had told emergency services there had been a "knife incident" at her flat in south-east London. When police arrived, he said: "It's not what it seems."
Ms Wang, who was obsessed with cleanliness, had accused Michals of giving her an infection after she developed a rash. The students had been seeing each other for six months but had only slept together once. She had insisted on seeing Michals' STI test results before the encounter and took precautions such as the morning-after pill.
On the day of the killing, Michals took food to Ms Wang's flat to make a charcuterie board and try to console her. A row broke out, and he stabbed her twice in the face and strangled her before leaving. She might have survived, but Michals spoke to his father and obtained details of solicitors before calling an ambulance hours later.
He denied murder but was convicted by an Old Bailey jury. Chicago-born Michals claimed Ms Wang attacked him with a knife and that he acted accidentally while defending himself.
His defence was privately funded by his parents, who travelled from the US to watch the trial. Michals describes himself as a cinematographer, photographer and drone pilot.
Judge Richard Marks said he will sentence on a date convenient for both families. Michals, wearing a blue jumper and white shirt, leaned on the glass of the dock and clutched his chest as he was convicted. His parents looked on with pained expressions.
Prosecutor Henrietta Paget, KC, described the killing as "brutal and savage" and noted Ms Wang was killed in her own bedroom. Ms Wang had been looking for a life partner, while Michals only wanted something casual. She would disinfect his sofa before sitting on it and clean his flat when she visited.
In February 2023, they had sex following Ms Wang’s instructions on entering her flat, washing, and using a condom. Afterwards, she became concerned about a rash and feared having an STI, asking Michals to get tested.
Messages recovered by police showed she told him: "I won't want to go through that, dying would be easier," and that she was fed up with "viruses" and "dishonest people."
Michals said he was trying to be supportive but did not understand the situation fully. The day before her death, Ms Wang told him: "I hate you for not taking a test, I hate you for pushing me to take the pill, I hate you for ruining my life." Michals later brought food to her flat, claiming that she attacked him with a knife. He said he stabbed her in self-defence, leant on her neck to restrain her, and then left.
He disposed of the knife, Ms Wang's phone, and the food in a bin bag before taking an Uber home. He called 999 at 11:08pm, saying she was not breathing and that there had been a serious incident. Police found her face-up on the bedroom floor with stab wounds to the face, lying in a pool of blood. Ms Wang would have survived 30 to 60 minutes after the attack.
Michals deleted WhatsApp conversations with Ms Wang, which police recovered. The American studied filmmaking and TV in Chicago before freelancing as a cameraman. Prosecutors described Ms Wang as quiet, gentle, organised, funny, and a talented writer aiming to complete a PhD and return to China. She was reflective and interested in mindfulness and meditation.
Michals was convicted of murder and was remanded in custody pending sentencing.
