A businessman who hid cameras in his London home and drugged women has been jailed for life after pleading guilty to a string of sexual offences. Chao Xu, 33, of Greenwich, admitted 24 charges against six young women, including rape, sexual assault, and voyeurism, committed between February 2022 and June 2025.
Police found hidden cameras in multiple areas of Xu's home, including inside an air freshener and in bathrooms. Searches of his phone revealed hundreds of intimate images and videos of women. His filming of his own offending provided key evidence leading to his guilty pleas at Woolwich Crown Court.
Xu, who owned a recruitment company, used networking events at his home to select women to drug and attack. He would spike drinks, and when women felt unwell, he offered them a place to stay. Drugs recovered included substances used by vets to treat animals, which left victims drowsy and incapacitated.
Detectives have identified three victims, while three others remain unidentified. Police believe Xu's offending may have gone back years and that there could be many more victims, all of whom are believed to be of Chinese heritage. The judge, Simon Stirling, told Xu that a lengthy custodial sentence was inevitable.
Detective Chief Inspector Lewis Sanderson described Xu as a 'calculated prolific sex offender' who preyed on unsuspecting women. Suzanne Crane of the Crown Prosecution Service said Xu was a 'serious danger to women' and that without the bravery of victims, his offending may have continued undetected.
