Joshua Michals, a 26-year-old American graduate student living in London, has been convicted of fatally stabbing student Zhe Wang during an argument about their intimate life.
Text messages revealed Wang, 31, believed Michals had mistreated her, forced her to take birth control pills and, most importantly, infected her with a STD.
The investigation revealed a series of actions taken by Michals after the incident, including disposing of evidence, taking an Uber home, and contacting his father, the vice president of sales at a multinational company, for legal assistance.
All of this while Wang remained alive but gravely injured.
He now faces a life sentence.
The student hastily disposed of evidence before asking his dad for a lawyer
On March 20, 2024, Joshua Michals arrived at Zhe Wang’s southeast London apartment with food.
Earlier that day, she had messaged him in distress, accusing him of giving her a STD. She had developed a rash, and despite not having a confirmed diagnosis, believed Michals was responsible.
In her messages, she told him she no longer wanted to live.
“I don’t want to go through that, dying would be easier,” she wrote. “I’m sick of viruses and dishonest people. I just want to rest for good.”
Their relationship, which began when the two met at Goldsmiths, University of London, had been reportedly deteriorating for some time. Michals had previously resisted her requests to get tested, and the tension over the issue had escalated.
At 7:17 pm, Michals sent a one-word message:
“Here.”
Later that night, an altercation occurred inside Wang’s flat. According to evidence presented in court, Michals stabbed her twice in the face and applied pressure to her neck.
A forensic pathologist testified that Wang would have remained alive for 30 to 60 minutes following the attack.
Michaels fled the scene, allegedly leaving Wang to pass away from her injuries
Rather than seeking help, Michals collected Wang’s phone and the food he had brought, placed them in a trash bag, and discarded it in the building’s communal bin. He then ordered an Uber and returned to his apartment in Greenwich.
Upon arriving home, the first thing in his mind was calling his father, David Michals, a Chicago-based vice president at Legrand, to ask for assistance in finding a solicitor.
It wasn’t until 11:08 pm, nearly four hours after the attack, that he contacted emergency services. In the call, he stated there had been a serious incident and confirmed he was no longer at the scene.
When officers searched his home later that evening, they recovered bloodstained clothing.
In court, Michals claimed it was Wang who had attacked him with a kitchen knife, and that he acted in self-defense. He described her using adjectives such as “crazy,” “demented,” and “possessed.”
“I just wanted to get her away from me,” he told jurors.
In light of the available evidence, the jury rejected his explanation.
Michals was studying a master’s in filmmaking, while Wang was training to become a teacher
According to police, the pair had met several months earlier while collecting their student IDs. Michals was enrolled in a master’s program in filmmaking, and Wang was training to become a teacher. Their relationship was casual.
As part of the investigation, prosecutors reviewed extensive message exchanges between Wang and Michals. The communications revealed that Wang felt Michals had taken advantage of her.
On March 19, the day before the incident, Wang had written:
“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.”
Following her passing, a post-mortem confirmed that Wang had sustained two stab wounds to the face and compression injuries to the neck. She was found lifeless in her bedroom.
“Michals carried out a brutal and savage attack on Zhe… We are pleased the jury has seen through his claims that he ki**ed Zhe by accident,” said Detective Claire Guiver.
Joshua Michals was raised in Bloomingdale, Illinois, in a $600,000 home. His father, David, works as a vice president at the French-owned lighting company Legrand, and his mother, Christine, is a communications manager at the energy firm GTI.
Both parents were present for sentencing and paid for his legal defense, which was led by attorney Brian St Louis.
“Monster.” Netizens took to social media to share their thoughts on the case
