A London businessman has been sentenced to life imprisonment for drugging and sexually assaulting women, recording his attacks, and committing hundreds of other sexual offences. Chao Xu, 33, was described by the judge as an 'incredibly dangerous man' whose offending was 'calculated and planned'. He pleaded guilty to 24 offences against six women, including rape, assault by penetration, and upskirting.
Police fear Xu may be one of the worst sex offenders in British criminal history, with potentially hundreds of victims still unidentified. Searches of his flat in Greenwich revealed hidden cameras in air fresheners and a packet of sanitary products. He used his phone to film attacks, including upskirting on escalators at London Bridge station.
Xu lured women to his home with parties or networking events, serving a cocktail called 'Spring of Life' mixed with date rape drugs such as GHB and scopolamine. One victim, a PhD student, said she felt everything but could not fight back. In a statement, she said Xu 'stole the person I was' and that she struggles with anxiety and fear of being attacked again.
At Woolwich Crown Court, Judge Grout imposed a life sentence with a minimum term of 13 and a half years, noting Xu is liable for deportation as a foreign national. Detective Superintendent Lewis Sanderson said Xu edited footage of his attacks into a compilation for his own gratification and also watched extreme pornography, leading to further potential charges.
Police have identified three victims so far, with at least seven women sexually assaulted. After Xu's guilty plea, more than ten further voyeurism victims came forward, with the total number of victims in the hundreds. The case has drawn comparisons to that of Zhenhao Zou, but police say there is no link between the two.
