For the Hong Kong actress with the same name and Chinese surname, see Cecilia Cheung.
Cecilia Zhang (also known as Dong-Yue Zhang; March 30, 1994 – October 20, 2003) was a nine-year-old child from North York, a district of Toronto located in Ontario, Canada who went missing on October 20, 2003.[1] After being missing for six months, her body was discovered by the Credit River in Mississauga on March 27, 2004. Min Chen, a Chinese citizen from Shanghai who was in Canada on a visa, was arrested. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on May 9, 2006.[1] Chen confessed that he was kidnapping for ransom and her death was accidental.
Zhang was nine years old at the time of her abduction and murder. She was born on March 30, 1994, to her parents, Raymond Zhang and Sherry Xu, who came from Jiangsu and arrived in Canada in 1998.[2] She was in grade 4 and enrolled at the Seneca Hill Public School and in a gifted program. Her parents reportedly did not let her play alone without supervision on the front lawn of their house.[1]
Min Chen (simplified Chinese: 陈敏; traditional Chinese: 陳敏; pinyin: Chén Mǐn; born January 30, 1983[3]) is a Chinese native from Shanghai who had been living in Canada on a visa since 2001. His father is an airline executive and his mother is a police officer in Shanghai. They were giving him money in the course of the kidnapping.[4]
At the time of Zhang's kidnapping, Chen had stopped his studying English at Seneca College Newnham Campus, which is near Zhang's home in North York, Ontario. Chen also had not completed his grade 12 courses at a local private academy. According to police, Min Chen knew a female boarder who had lived at the Zhang home between September 2002 and March 2003 and had visited the Zhang home at least four times. Police said that Cecilia would have been comfortable in Chen's company under normal social circumstances.
AbductionEdit
According to an agreed statement of facts read out in a Brampton, Ontario, courthouse, Chen was failing in his college studies and feared deportation back to his native China. Being a broke visa student, he desperately needed $25,000 to enter into a marriage of convenience as a means of becoming a permanent resident in Canada. Chen entered Zhang's home through a kitchen window and removed her from her home between 3:00 AM and 4:00 AM, leaving by a side door. When Cecilia tried to scream, Chen covered her face with a towel and held his hand over her mouth. Cecilia had stopped struggling by the time Chen placed her inside the trunk of his car. When Chen checked on Cecilia later on, he discovered that she had stopped breathing.[5] According to Chen, Cecilia's death was the result of Chen's poorly planned kidnapping and not deliberate.
The highly decomposed remains of Cecilia Zhang were subsequently found in a wooded area of Mississauga by the Credit River at Eglinton Avenue on Saturday, March 27, 2004.[1] Investigators were unable to determine the cause of death and were unable to determine if she had been sexually assaulted due to the advanced decomposition.[1]
TrialEdit
Peel Regional Police had received a complaint about potential illegal fishing in the area on Sept. 18, 2003[6] near where the body was discovered. His fingerprints were also found on a window screen of Zhang's house.[7]
Min Chen was arrested and charged with first degree murder. Chen was represented by criminal lawyer John Rosen, who had previously defended serial killer and serial rapistPaul Bernardo.[8] Min Chen pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on May 9, 2006. He was sentenced to life imprisonment; under the faint hope clause then in effect, he was given the right to apply for parole after 15 years.
During sentencing, Justice Bruce Durno, who presided over the case, questioned Chen's explanation of the events. He stated: “This was not an accidental killing in the course of a bungled kidnapping”.[1][9]
Lacking an extradition treaty between the governments of Canada and the People’s Republic of China, human rights lawyers have noted that under Chinese law, when Chen completes his sentence and is deported back to China, he will likely face a second trial and sentence in China. Canadian law forbids this practice, known as double jeopardy, while Chinese law permits it if a Chinese resident commits a crime on foreign soil. Trial and punishment in the other country is seen as a mitigating factor, but does not preclude further imprisonment or executionin the People's Republic of China.[10]
^ abcdefEdwards, Peter (May 30, 2015). "Murdered girl Cecilia Zhang would have turned 21 this spring, neighbour recalls". Toronto Star. from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
^. CTV. July 23, 2004. Archived from the original on June 21, 2009. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
^. CBC Toronto. May 9, 2006. Archived from the original on May 13, 2006. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
^Agreed Statement of Facts Ontario Superior Court of Justice
^"Latest Breaking News, Headlines & Updates | National Post". from the original on 2016-07-11. Retrieved 2016-07-22.
^. CTV. May 10, 2006. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
^Mitchell, Bob (January 3, 2007). "Killer caught, but mystery lingers". Toronto Star. from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
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For the Hong Kong actress with the same name and Chinese surname see Cecilia Cheung Cecilia Zhang also known as Dong Yue Zhang March 30 1994 October 20 2003 was a nine year old child from North York a district of Toronto located in Ontario Canada who went missing on October 20 2003 1 After being missing for six months her body was discovered by the Credit River in Mississauga on March 27 2004 Min Chen a Chinese citizen from Shanghai who was in Canada on a visa was arrested He pleaded guilty to second degree murder on May 9 2006 1 Chen confessed that he was kidnapping for ransom and her death was accidental Murder of Cecilia ZhangCecilia Zhang c summer of 2003LocationNorth York Ontario CanadaDate20 October 2003Attack typeAbduction and second degree murderDeaths1VictimsCecilia ZhangPerpetratorMin ChenCecilia ZhangSimplified Chinese张东岳Traditional Chinese張東嶽TranscriptionsStandard MandarinHanyu PinyinZhang DōngyueWade GilesChang Tong yue Contents 1 Background 2 Abduction 3 Trial 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksBackground EditThis section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Murder of Cecilia Zhang news newspapers books scholar JSTOR February 2023 Learn how and when to remove this template message Zhang was nine years old at the time of her abduction and murder She was born on March 30 1994 to her parents Raymond Zhang and Sherry Xu who came from Jiangsu and arrived in Canada in 1998 2 She was in grade 4 and enrolled at the Seneca Hill Public School and in a gifted program Her parents reportedly did not let her play alone without supervision on the front lawn of their house 1 Min Chen simplified Chinese 陈敏 traditional Chinese 陳敏 pinyin Chen Mǐn born January 30 1983 3 is a Chinese native from Shanghai who had been living in Canada on a visa since 2001 His father is an airline executive and his mother is a police officer in Shanghai They were giving him money in the course of the kidnapping 4 At the time of Zhang s kidnapping Chen had stopped his studying English at Seneca College Newnham Campus which is near Zhang s home in North York Ontario Chen also had not completed his grade 12 courses at a local private academy According to police Min Chen knew a female boarder who had lived at the Zhang home between September 2002 and March 2003 and had visited the Zhang home at least four times Police said that Cecilia would have been comfortable in Chen s company under normal social circumstances Abduction EditAccording to an agreed statement of facts read out in a Brampton Ontario courthouse Chen was failing in his college studies and feared deportation back to his native China Being a broke visa student he desperately needed 25 000 to enter into a marriage of convenience as a means of becoming a permanent resident in Canada Chen entered Zhang s home through a kitchen window and removed her from her home between 3 00 AM and 4 00 AM leaving by a side door When Cecilia tried to scream Chen covered her face with a towel and held his hand over her mouth Cecilia had stopped struggling by the time Chen placed her inside the trunk of his car When Chen checked on Cecilia later on he discovered that she had stopped breathing 5 According to Chen Cecilia s death was the result of Chen s poorly planned kidnapping and not deliberate The highly decomposed remains of Cecilia Zhang were subsequently found in a wooded area of Mississauga by the Credit River at Eglinton Avenue on Saturday March 27 2004 1 Investigators were unable to determine the cause of death and were unable to determine if she had been sexually assaulted due to the advanced decomposition 1 Trial EditPeel Regional Police had received a complaint about potential illegal fishing in the area on Sept 18 2003 6 near where the body was discovered His fingerprints were also found on a window screen of Zhang s house 7 Min Chen was arrested and charged with first degree murder Chen was represented by criminal lawyer John Rosen who had previously defended serial killer and serial rapist Paul Bernardo 8 Min Chen pleaded guilty to second degree murder on May 9 2006 He was sentenced to life imprisonment under the faint hope clause then in effect he was given the right to apply for parole after 15 years During sentencing Justice Bruce Durno who presided over the case questioned Chen s explanation of the events He stated This was not an accidental killing in the course of a bungled kidnapping 1 9 Lacking an extradition treaty between the governments of Canada and the People s Republic of China human rights lawyers have noted that under Chinese law when Chen completes his sentence and is deported back to China he will likely face a second trial and sentence in China Canadian law forbids this practice known as double jeopardy while Chinese law permits it if a Chinese resident commits a crime on foreign soil Trial and punishment in the other country is seen as a mitigating factor but does not preclude further imprisonment or execution in the People s Republic of China 10 See also Edit Canada portal China portalList of kidnappings List of solved missing person cases Murder of Amanda Zhao VancouverReferences Edit a b c d e f Edwards Peter May 30 2015 Murdered girl Cecilia Zhang would have turned 21 this spring neighbour recalls Toronto Star Archived from the original on August 16 2016 Retrieved December 22 2020 https www cbc ca news2 background ceciliazhang newsarchive html From shy boy to murderer Archived 2009 02 06 at the Wayback Machine Toronto Star 11 May 2006 Cecilia may have been killed for money reports CTV July 23 2004 Archived from the original on June 21 2009 Retrieved December 22 2020 Student pleads guilty to killing 9 year old Cecilia Zhang CBC Toronto May 9 2006 Archived from the original on May 13 2006 Retrieved December 22 2020 Agreed Statement of Facts Ontario Superior Court of Justice Latest Breaking News Headlines amp Updates National Post Archived from the original on 2016 07 11 Retrieved 2016 07 22 Chinese visa student admits to killing Cecilia CTV May 10 2006 Archived from the original on February 20 2012 Retrieved December 22 2020 Mitchell Bob January 3 2007 Killer caught but mystery lingers Toronto Star Archived from the original on August 16 2016 Retrieved December 22 2020 Is child killer here to stay Archived 2009 02 06 at the Wayback Machine Toronto Star 14 May 2006 External links EditCBC News In Depth The Cecilia Zhang case Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Murder of Cecilia Zhang amp oldid 1169619524, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
