Overview

• Yang Zhao, a Chinese national on trial in Brisbane, testified that Qiong Yan’s death in September 2020 was accidental and not caused by strangulation or blunt force trauma.
• Zhao admitted to hiding Yan's body in a toolbox for 10 months and impersonating her to steal up to $400,000 from her mother and accounts.
• A forensic pathologist stated decomposition prevented determining the exact cause of death but found no conclusive evidence of strangulation or blunt force trauma.
• Zhao confessed to lying to police during their investigation, claiming he initially fabricated a confession to seek punishment for his actions.
• The trial continues with Zhao expressing shame over his actions while maintaining that Yan’s death was a tragic accident during recreational nitrous oxide use.