LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - An American student has been found guilty of murdering his on-again-off-again girlfriend in her south-east London home.
The suspect, 26-year-old Joshua Michals, from Chicago, stabbed fellow Goldsmiths University student 31-year-old Zhe Wang at her apartment in Manor Park, Lewisham, in March 2024, BBC reported. Prosecutors said that after the fatal stabbing, the student called his father to get a lawyer as she lay on the floor dying, according to the New York Post.
He killed her after she accused him of giving her a sexually transmitted infection during the one time they had sex. Michals, whose father, David, is vice president of sales strategy for a Chicago-based company, claimed Wang had come at him with a knife and that he had killed her accidentally while trying to protect himself.
His parents, who privately funded his defense, were in court watching as their son was found guilty of murder. Michals was studying for a master's degree in filmmaking at Goldsmiths, University of London, and described himself as a cinematographer, photographer, and drone pilot on his LinkedIn page.
Prosecutors and UK media repeatedly highlighted Michals’ privileged background throughout the trial, with the New York Post dubbing him a “wealthy nepo baby,” a label tied not to celebrity lineage, but to the financial cushion and parental influence that followed him overseas.
Michals' father, a high-ranking Chicago executive, immediately became his first phone call after the stabbing, as Michals sought legal help while his girlfriend lay dying on the floor.
The court noted that his parents privately funded his defense and were present throughout proceedings, underscoring the image of a well-connected young man accustomed to relying on family resources when trouble arose.
He graduated from DePaul University in August 2022 with a BFA in cinematography and film/video production, according to his profile. Wang, a confessed "germophobe," had accused her American boyfriend of giving her a venereal disease after she developed a rash, and Michals had gone over to confront her, the judge was told.
She would disinfect his sofa before she sat on it, and cleaned his apartment when she came to visit, Michals told the judge. When they agreed to have sex, Wang sent Michals instructions on how to enter her apartment, wash himself, and put on the condom before coming to the bedroom where she would be waiting.
Wang reportedly insisted Michals show her his STI test results before they had sex, but after developing a rash, she demanded he take another test. When Michals refused, Wang accused him of ruining her life and threatened to go to the university, prosecutors said.
The pair also argued because Wang wanted a serious relationship and she was frustrated Michals wasn't making more time for her, the judge was told.
On the day of the murder, Michals had gone to Wang's apartment to make a charcuterie board to try to console her, but after an argument broke out, he stabbed her in the face twice and choked her before leaving her home. He claimed that when he arrived, he found Wang "cold" and monosyllabic, and that she attacked him with a knife as he came out of the bathroom.
Michals previously told jurors that he didn't mean to strike Wang with the knife, saying, "I just wanted to get her away from me." Prosecutors noted that Wang might have survived if Michals hadn't called his father to get the details of a lawyer before calling 911 later that evening.
"It's not what it seems," he reportedly told police when they arrived to find Wang lying in a pool of blood in her bedroom, the judge heard from prosecutors.
"This case concerns the killing of a young woman by a man she'd only been seeing for a few short months," prosecutor Henriette Paget said. "This was a brutal and savage attack. She was killed in her own bedroom," she added. Wang was an aspiring teacher who was studying for an MA in creative writing and education, also at Goldsmiths, University of London.
Michals will be sentenced at a later date that is convenient for both his parents and Wang's family, Judge Richard Marks said.
The suspect, 26-year-old Joshua Michals, from Chicago, stabbed fellow Goldsmiths University student 31-year-old Zhe Wang at her apartment in Manor Park, Lewisham, in March 2024, BBC reported. Prosecutors said that after the fatal stabbing, the student called his father to get a lawyer as she lay on the floor dying, according to the New York Post.
He killed her after she accused him of giving her a sexually transmitted infection during the one time they had sex. Michals, whose father, David, is vice president of sales strategy for a Chicago-based company, claimed Wang had come at him with a knife and that he had killed her accidentally while trying to protect himself.
His parents, who privately funded his defense, were in court watching as their son was found guilty of murder. Michals was studying for a master's degree in filmmaking at Goldsmiths, University of London, and described himself as a cinematographer, photographer, and drone pilot on his LinkedIn page.
Prosecutors and UK media repeatedly highlighted Michals’ privileged background throughout the trial, with the New York Post dubbing him a “wealthy nepo baby,” a label tied not to celebrity lineage, but to the financial cushion and parental influence that followed him overseas.
Michals' father, a high-ranking Chicago executive, immediately became his first phone call after the stabbing, as Michals sought legal help while his girlfriend lay dying on the floor.
The court noted that his parents privately funded his defense and were present throughout proceedings, underscoring the image of a well-connected young man accustomed to relying on family resources when trouble arose.
He graduated from DePaul University in August 2022 with a BFA in cinematography and film/video production, according to his profile. Wang, a confessed "germophobe," had accused her American boyfriend of giving her a venereal disease after she developed a rash, and Michals had gone over to confront her, the judge was told.
She would disinfect his sofa before she sat on it, and cleaned his apartment when she came to visit, Michals told the judge. When they agreed to have sex, Wang sent Michals instructions on how to enter her apartment, wash himself, and put on the condom before coming to the bedroom where she would be waiting.
Wang reportedly insisted Michals show her his STI test results before they had sex, but after developing a rash, she demanded he take another test. When Michals refused, Wang accused him of ruining her life and threatened to go to the university, prosecutors said.
The pair also argued because Wang wanted a serious relationship and she was frustrated Michals wasn't making more time for her, the judge was told.
On the day of the murder, Michals had gone to Wang's apartment to make a charcuterie board to try to console her, but after an argument broke out, he stabbed her in the face twice and choked her before leaving her home. He claimed that when he arrived, he found Wang "cold" and monosyllabic, and that she attacked him with a knife as he came out of the bathroom.
Michals previously told jurors that he didn't mean to strike Wang with the knife, saying, "I just wanted to get her away from me." Prosecutors noted that Wang might have survived if Michals hadn't called his father to get the details of a lawyer before calling 911 later that evening.
"It's not what it seems," he reportedly told police when they arrived to find Wang lying in a pool of blood in her bedroom, the judge heard from prosecutors.
"This case concerns the killing of a young woman by a man she'd only been seeing for a few short months," prosecutor Henriette Paget said. "This was a brutal and savage attack. She was killed in her own bedroom," she added. Wang was an aspiring teacher who was studying for an MA in creative writing and education, also at Goldsmiths, University of London.
Michals will be sentenced at a later date that is convenient for both his parents and Wang's family, Judge Richard Marks said.
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