Jury shown clips of student allegedly raping woman

Jurors were visibly upset as they were shown footage of a student allegedly raping a woman.

Zhenhao Zou, a 27-year-old Chinese national who was studying in the UK, is on trial at Inner London Crown Court accused of drugging and raping 10 women between 2019 and 2023.

One member of the jury was in tears as two 10-minute clips were played, which prosecutors say show the defendant raping a woman identified only as Female A.

Mr Zou remained emotionless in the dock as the clips were played. He denies 11 counts of rape as well as three counts of voyeurism, 12 of possession of an extreme pornographic image, one of false imprisonment and eight of possession of a controlled drug with intent to supply.

Mr Zou, from Elephant and Castle in south London, studied for a master's degree at University College London from 2019 through to 2021 before beginning a PhD at the same university.

Warning: The following story contains descriptions which may be distressing

In the first clip shown in court, the defendant can be seen positioning the camera to point at a naked woman who is lying motionless on a bed in a room where a blind is drawn. Mr Zou, whose defence is that the encounter was consensual, then goes on to have sex with her.

Female A told him to stop, the court heard.

In the second clip, which took place in what prosecutors said was the same room, the defendant was again seen having sex with Female A while she told him to stop, the court heard.

It is not known when the clips were filmed or who Female A is.

Giving evidence, Det Con Jack Woods told jurors: "There appears to be multiple scratches on (Mr Zou's) back on both sides."

Det Con Woods said the clips appeared to have been filmed at Woburn Place near Russell Square in central London, where Mr Zou was living from September 2019 to September 2020.

Jurors were given breaks after the short clips were played, and more videos will be shown to them later on Thursday.

The trial continues.

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