A lost child, a global search, and a heartbreaking truth | Forensic Files

July 11 2020 marks the 30th anniversary of the disappearance of Sarah McDermott from cannon or train station in Victoria
Australia case file presents in conjunction with author Vicki Petraeus are working on a podcast series
dedicated to finding Sarah if you know something about Sarah's disappearance or saw something or found something that
you think is important please let us know it is our greatest wish that someone knows something that will help
find Sarah and to give her family the answers they need there is also a 1 million dollar reward for information
that leads to an arrest the podcast is currently in development assist the ongoing efforts by visiting searching
for Sarah calm [Music] our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at
anytime you need support please contact your local crisis center for suggested phone numbers for confidential support
please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our website Southern Cross station is the second
busiest to railway station in Melbourne with more than nine million passenger movements recorded between 2007 and 2008
as well as being served by the city's suburban train services Southern Cross is the terminus for the state of
Victoria's regional rail network a shopping complex that joins the station and underneath is a coach
terminal providing buses to interstate and regional destinations as well as the sky bus shuttle service that travels to
Melvin's tullamarine Airport for security purposes a number of closed-circuit television cameras a
place to strategic locations throughout on Saturday September 15 2007 just after
10:00 a.m. an elderly Chinese couple were walking through Southern Cross station when they noticed the female
toddler standing alone near the escalator she was of Asian appearance and too looked to be around three years
old she had short dark hair cut in a bob and wore a red denim hooded jacket an aqua colored vest with a red and pink
diamond pattern and bright pink corduroy pants thinking that toddler might have been
lost the couple approached an attempted to speak to her when she didn't respond they beckoned to Victoria rail employee
named Moreno Mosholu over to see if he could help while trying to speak with the child Moreno patted her on the head
and immediately noticed that her hair was very greasy as though it hadn't been washed in some time there was no sign of
any frantic parents looking for their lost child so Moreno decided to summon police to
the scene responding officers also attempted to communicate with the child but she was either unwilling or unable
to tell them her name noticing that the vest she was wearing was made by a popular children's
clothing brand called pumpkin patch they decided to nickname her pumpkin until a
proper identification could be made the girls clothing provided no real clue to her identity as although the pumpkin
patch brand was based in New Zealand it was sold widely throughout Australia despite her unwashed hair pumpkin
appeared to be a healthy well cared for child who was appropriately dressed in clean clothing the police took her into
their care hoping she was merely lost and her parents would soon come forward to claim her when no one did they
scoured CCTV footage from Southern Cross station and quickly realized that pumpkin had been deliberately abandoned
[Music] [Music] [Music] at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday September 15 2007 the Southern Cross security cameras
had captured pumpkin as she walked through the stations street-level Lobby hand-in-hand with a middle-aged
dark-haired man of Asian appearance the men was dressed in black trousers and a gray suit jacket and was pulling a small
suitcase on wheels in his left hand when the pair reached the base of an escalator that led to the upper floor
the man seemingly instructed pumpkin to remain where she was before stepping onto the escalator alone upon reaching
the first floor he glanced back briefly then continued striding purposefully ahead the young child remained standing
all by herself at the base of the escalator barely moving as though she was trying her best to stay still after
viewing the footage multilingual staff from Victoria police attempted to converse with pumpkin and a number of
different interpreters were summoned but none succeeded in communicating with her
the following day of Sunday September 16 the Department of Human Services arranged for pumpkin to be placed with
an emergency foster family that same day the police shared the CCTV footage as part of a public appeal for
the girl's parents extended family members or anyone who recognized her to come forward they reported that although
pumpkin had been through a considerable ordeal and wasn't speaking to anybody she had appeared happy into perky
overnight media outlets soon started sharing pumpkins story in an effort to discover who she was and why she had
been separated from her family members of the public immediately began contacting Victoria police to say that
they recognized the pair with a number of calls coming from the neighboring country of New Zealand the call is
believed the men captured on camera was nine inch weigh a 53 year old martial arts instructor and prominent member of
the Chinese community from Auckland New Zealand the girl he had abandoned was believed to be his three-year-old
daughter Chen shun Shui one individual reported seeing the father and daughter while on board a flight from Auckland to
Melbourne several days earlier on Thursday September 13 police obtained the flights passenger
manifest and examined the list of individuals who had been on board based on this information they confirmed that
pumpkin was in fact a chen shun Shui and two the man was her father na in shui further inquiries revealed that upon
landing in Melbourne Shui had told custom agents that he and his daughter were visiting the city for a holiday
however later that evening when they checked in at a hotel Shui told the hotel's porter that he was
permanently relocating to Melbourne he had even inquired about the best area to live and where to purchase a car the
following morning of Friday September 14 sway had visited a travel agency in Melbourne central business district and
attempted to book a flight to the u.s. city of Los Angeles that evening when the travel agent informed him there
weren't any direct flights available Shui queried about connecting flights from other locations before settling on
a direct flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles scheduled for the following day approximately 24 hours later he
abandoned Chen Xiang at Southern Cross station and made his way to Melbourne Airport there after he successfully
passed through a security checkpoint CCTV cameras caught him smiling widely and flashing two thumbs up by the end of
Sunday September 16 police had solved the mystery of chen kun's identity but two new questions had sprung up in its
place they now had to figure out why nine Shui had left his daughter alone at a busy railway station and to the
whereabouts of his wife and Chen Sean's mother 28 year old Annan Leo based on the evidence uncovered so far there was
no indication she had travelled to Melbourne with her family anin leo was born on February 20 1979 in
Changsha the capital city of china's hunan province she was the only child to prosperous parents and to grow up to
have a range of interests including reading listening to music singing karaoke and watching films her all-time
favorite movie was Chinese Odyssey in 1995 two-part feature based on a classic 16th century novel set during the Ming
Dynasty as well as having an interest in pop culture Annan was an active person who played badminton and enjoyed going
out driving having lived her entire life in a bustling populous city and in often
dreamed of visiting Anna Dilek Island or forests and also hoped to move overseas
one day in April 2002 at the age of 23 she achieved both goals by moving to New Zealand a small island country renowned
for its striking natural beauty Annan had applied for a student visa to study English and she set herself up in the
city of Auckland on the country's North Island at the time Auckland was home to a rapidly growing Chinese community but
its insularity and disconnection from New Zealand's broader population meant that many new arrivals battled with
feelings of isolation those like annan who had difficulty speaking English struggled even more although she was
happy to be in New Zealand anin often felt lonely in her new home she initially moved in with another
woman but in early 2003 she began renting a room at the home of nyan Shiu who was
aged in his late 40s at the time schway was born in 1954 in the city of telling in northeast china during early
adulthood he worked as a middle school physical education teacher and to lived for a time in Los Angeles he eventually
returned to China where he married his first wife and in 1981 the two had a daughter
they named Grace 9 years later schway emigrated to New Zealand alone leaving his family behind
schway had a passion for martial arts and was convinced that it was his destiny to share his unique blend of
kungfu and Taichi with others around the world after moving to wok 'land Shui began
holding martial arts classes in a Chinese restaurant where he predominantly taught Wu style Tai Chi
his program was a success and he soon upgraded to a larger venue in Auckland central business district before
eventually relocating his school to a sprawling parkland in the inner-city suburb of Epsom he
told his students he had learned his martial art skills from a man with a long white beard whom he had encountered
when playing in the mountains as a child the fairy tale-like story was eventually
published in local Chinese language newspapers drawing more students and increasing sways business within a few
years of arriving in New Zealand Shui obtained citizenship and became something of a local celebrity in
Auckland's Chinese community in 1998 he further enhanced his own mythos by self-publishing an autobiography titled
the pearl of Wu style Taiji in the book Shui claimed to have been conceived by magic before he was born
he's aging childless mother allegedly went to a temple to pray for her son while there she had a vision in which an
elderly man told her she would have a baby boy who would grow up to be a great and
successful man shortly afterwards she became pregnant in early 2003 Shui took Annan into his home as a boarder on the
condition that she cleaned the house in exchange for her room shortly into this arrangement Annan confided that her
student visa was due to expire she wanted to stay in New Zealand but couldn't afford the tuition fees
required to continue studying and therefore wouldn't be able to renew her visa Shui was aware that marrying a New
Zealand a citizen would be an alternative way for an entire mine in the country and suddenly proposed to her
in a roundabout fashion by asking what about me even though there was a 25 year age difference between the two
Anand felt she didn't have any other options if she wanted to stay in New Zealand she agreed to marry Shiu
believing that his many accomplishments and high standing in the community were worthy qualities in her husband the pair
began a romantic relationship and on July 28 2003 they were married at an Auckland registry office
on the day of their wedding Annan was already four months pregnant with their first child in September 2003 and
unapplied for New Zealand a residency three months later on December 22 she gave birth to Chang Shan Shui was
reportedly disappointed that the baby wasn't a boy but Annan adored her and that the mother and daughter became
inseparable to those who knew Annan that made no sense that she would stay in New Zealand
while her husband took their daughter to a foreign country on Monday September 17
2007 the day after Victoria police confirmed Chen Shawn's identity she finally spoke
her first words to authorities by asking for her mother Victoria police had been
in touch with their counterparts in Auckland who said about trying to contact an 'only all her mobile phone
was switched off so they headed to the family's residence a white weatherboard house on Keystone Avenue in the
southwestern suburb of Mount Roskill the police found no sign of an annette the property nor was her vehicle there the
choise honda a fogger sedan was parked out the front police also checked dunnan's bank accounts and discovered
there had been no activity since monday september 10 2007 on Tuesday September 18 investigators publicly urged us way
to contact to law enforcement and they confirmed they were working to track him down with the International Criminal
Police organization better known as Interpol and openly labeled his fleeing with Chan Chun as a kidnapping that same
day police found an ins car parked at Auckland's International Airport though they were certain she hadn't left the
country CCTV cameras at the airport had captured Shui and Chen Xuan checking in and proceeding through customs but there
was no evidence to indicate that Annan had ever been there the police returned to the family's mount Rosco home and
cordoned it off in anticipation of a forensic examination at nine o'clock and that night a search
warrant was issued for the property and Vishwas vehicle investigators examined at the residence more closely but found
nothing of note choir's car was towed to a secure location than to given a preliminary examination but nothing of
interest was found a more thorough search was scheduled for the following day on Wednesday September 19 additional
police officers in Auckland were briefed on the case and at 1:00 p.m. an extensive forensic search of sways under
a fogger commenced once investigators gained access to the car they opened its boot and immediately
made a shocking discovery inside was the body of a young woman of Chinese ethnicity covered with a dressing-gown
beneath the gown the woman was naked except for a pair of gloves a yellow neck tire was wrapped around her throat
and two red women's underwear and a jacket were found lying next to her body inside one of the jackets pockets were
two men's rings one of which was a wedding band the body was positively identified as an 'only and an autopsy
was carried out the following morning it was determined that annan had been strangled to death with the yellow tire
most likely as the killer stood behind her she had been wearing a pendant around her neck which had compounded the
strangulation at approximately 3:00 o'clock that afternoon the police publicly confirmed that Annan's body had
been found they withheld the cause of her death but noted that had occurred following a violent incident and to that
Annan's husband no Yin Shui was the prime suspect as the police had taken two days to discover an ins body which
had been inside her husband's car parked outside their home some criticized the Auckland police for what they perceived
as an unnecessarily slow response the former high-ranking officer told the media the delay was quote absolutely
appalling and too noted it was possible that Annan may have still been alive when she was first placed in the cars
booth [Music] while New Zealand's police commissioner Howard broad admitted that the officers
didn't initially believe the car to be of any importance the Auckland police defended their
actions detective Senior Sergeant Simon's got who was heading the case clarified that the delay was due to
having to wait for the proper search warrant he explained quote we haven't had the keys for that vehicle it's just
not a matter of breaking the windows and getting in these things don't take minutes they could take days or weeks
many of the family's acquaintances told investigators that Annan and Shiu had appeared content and well-adjusted they
described a known as a kind but quiet person who embraced motherhood and helped her husband by driving him to and
from work each day however others had their doubts about the couple's relationship a friend of SH Waze told
investigators he suspected the marriage wasn't based on love but was rather transactional in nature
schway had been attracted to an ins youth and beauty while she had seen him as a means to stay in New Zealand
choir's friend believed that the significant age difference between the couple ensured marital problems were
inevitable a male neighbor told a journalist for the New Zealand Herald newspaper that Annan was friendly and
would often say hello in contrast schway didn't speak to his neighbors and appeared quote a bit kooky
often collecting the mail dressed only in his underwear it was also revealed that during a trip to China to visit her
family with Chan Sean Annan had an intrauterine contraceptive device inserted to prevent any future
pregnancies once she obtained to New Zealand a residency in December 2005 she refused to continue sharing a bed
with shui it also came to light that in March 2006 a film student and martial arts enthusiast named Ashiya hyung had
made a 9 minute documentary about shui titled kungfu father it was supervised by a filmmaker named
Tony Wright and portions of the documentary were filmed in shui and an ins home Tony told journalists that
during filming he had observed that the walls of the home were decorated with large posters of suede demonstrating
martial arts poses rather than with family photographs a translator had been present on set who communicated to Tony
that Shui didn't want him to speak to his wife overall Tony told journalists that he
felt the couple's relationship was one in which quote he talked and she listened throughout filming Shui boasted
about his career and claimed to be revered by 40,000 martial arts enthusiasts who were predominantly based
in the United States at one point he broke down when discussing his daughter from his first marriage grace in the
year 2000 when grace was 19 swaye had sponsored her to join him in New Zealand but in 2002 she had run away
because he was a neglectful father addressing grace directly Shui stated to the camera I lost you I feel such guilt
I put my career first I was selfish daughter please come back give me a chance to remedy those things that Papa
did wrong explaining that he wanted to be a better father to Chan Sean he stated my role now is to give this
baby more Father's love filmmaker Tony Wright told the press that he believed Shui steers were false
and that the scene had been a hollow performance despite sways standing as one of New Zealand's premier martial
arts experts his reputation had been unraveling for some time in the early 2000s a group from Auckland's Chinese
community had visited a martial arts Association in Beijing where Shui claimed to have trained to become a Tai
Chi master however the association revealed this was a lie Shui had also created discord in Los
Angeles where he had lived briefly before immigrating to New Zealand according to the owner of the Tai Chi
Academy of Los Angeles Shui had been ostracized by the city's Chinese community after he launched scathing
attacks on other Tai Chi teachers from around the world it was also revealed that he had lied about his
qualifications it was around the same time that choir's professional reputation was being questioned that his
relationship with anand became increasingly controlling people outside their marriage noticed signs of domestic
violence with one of SH ways students observing that he often ordered annan out of the room when he had guests on
two occasions the student also noticed that an ins face was bruised and grazed a longtime friend of an ins family had
witnessed sway exhibit explosive rage towards Annan and believed that she bore quote the brunt of much of his
disappointment in life on September 20 2006 one year before Shan Shan was abandoned at Southern
Cross station Shui had committed a particularly violent attack against Annan the couple were arguing about
money when shui suddenly threw a telephone at Annan who was holding Chang Shan at the time and an attempted to
shield her daughter from the phone but it wound up striking the toddler in the head leaving a small cut and swelling
Shui then ran towards Annan who was still holding Chang Shan and punched her several times in the head he then held a
30 centimeter long knife to her stomach and stated quote I treat you good and you don't treat me very well I love you
but you don't love me I am going to kill you Annan begged for her life and threw
money at Shui in an attempt to placate him before fleeing the house with Chang Shan
she reported the assault to the police and a government agency called Child Youth and family became involved
on September 29 2006 a temporary protection order was issued against Shui and a permanent protection order was
finalized three months later this order gave an enforcer D of Chang Shan and stipulated
that Shui was only permitted to see his daughter if Annan initiated contact he was also
required to complete a course to help him stop his violent behavior anin and Chen Xiang sought safety at a
women's refuge where they stayed for around one month another woman who had been at the refuge recalled how Annan
had arrived to blackened and bruised with nowhere else to go Shui frequently flirted the protection
order by driving near the refuge and attempting to contact Annan she grew so fearful of her husband that she brought
a scheduled trip to China forward by three weeks she even contacted the airline to request they not reveal her
plans to Shui two days later Shui had called the airline demanding to know an ins flight details but failed to
obtain them Hanan and Chen Xuan stayed in China for three months the two had previously visited family there on
several occasions but Shui hadn't ever joined them he was only one year younger than an ins mother which was considered
shameful being a private and reserved person Anand didn't confide in her relatives about the abuse she was
suffering On February 26 2007 she and Chang Shan returned to New Zealand and resumed occasional contact with shway
shway was eager to improve his reputation after rumours had spread about his martial arts career and in
early 2007 he acquired ownership of a Chinese language newspaper called Chinese times Hannon was a talented
writer and Shui offered her a role as a reporter with some acquaintances speculating that he used the publication
to lure Annan back into his life Shui attempted to restyle himself as an important media figure in Auckland's
Chinese community but his newspaper struggled to generate income and wasn't particularly successful
he prioritized advertising revenue over quality journalism and continually lowered the cost of placing ads in his
paper in order to attract more clients on June 20 2007 nine months after the attack on his family schway finally
fronted the Family Violence Court in Auckland he pleaded guilty to charges of assault against Danone and Shan Shan and
to using threatening words against Tannen the Probation Service recommended that Shui be jailed but Judge Phil
record on ordered a one year suspended sentence instead thus releasing Shui back home Annan and Cheng Shawn were
provided with no further protections or support later that month Annan and Chan Sean
flew to New Zealand's capital city of Wellington located 642 kilometres south of Auckland while Lennon's reasons for
doing so aren't entirely known it has been speculated that she was attempting to escape her husband once in Wellington
the mother and daughter bordered at the home of a truck driver named Wei Hong song feeling miserable and isolated
Annan began keeping a blog as a way to express her feelings the first entry was dated July 12 2007
and was written in Mandarin an excerpt read can't find someone to love and can't find someone to love me what
meaning is there to go on living to live is to continue suffering eager to find love Annan signed up to several dating
websites in her profiles she stated she was seeking friendship and true love in what she called a hard
uncontrollable and a lonely life she soon commenced the two-month fling with a 39 year old married artist whose
wife was away on August 18 2007 the relationship ended when the man's wife returned and in later wrote about her
heartbreak on her blog saying I have to escape from this love because if I can't
get the whole thing I'd rather have nothing it's really painful for me I cried but there is a kind of love called
letting go letting go forever I don't want to hurt another innocent that's why I'd rather hurt myself
at one point Shui arrived in Wellington unannounced having pursued his wife and daughter
hauled away from Auckland armed with a torch and a small axe he broke into the house they were staying at Annan and
Chen Xuan weren't home at the time but the owner Wei Hong Hong was Lee Hong grabbed a gun and managed to chase Shui
from his home later schway told a friend that he had intended to force Anand back to Auckland
and to that she was lucky he hadn't found her as he might have killed her if he did
fearing Shui would be able to find her in Chen Xuan wherever they went Annan thought it might be safer if they
simply all lived under the same roof in August 2007 one month before her body was recovered she decided to return to
wok hland to resume living with Shui investigators discovered an ins final blog entry which was written at around a
midnight on Monday September 10 2007 it read living in this world a lot of the time we live in difficulty and
loneliness if the conclusion of happiness must always be pain I would rather I am lonely and helpless if the
happy start has to end with pain I rather I never had happiness therefore I won't need to remember those happy
moments and to those painful experiences investigators pieced together Hannon's last-known movements and discovered that
her neighbors record lasting between 4:00 and 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday September 11 at 6:45 that same evening she was
witnessed buying groceries at a nearby supermarket marking the final time anyone outside of her family saw her
alive the following day of Wednesday September 12 sways newspaper Chinese times were
scheduled to run an addition the Shui made excuses to his employees as to why they couldn't publish in that same day
he ate lunch at a restaurant called a lover dark where owner raymond tang noted that shui appeared calm throughout
his meal Annan's mother shopping leo had been calling her daughter's mobile phone
since the day prior but with no response at some point during Wednesday Shui finally answered he explained that annan
and Shan Shan had gone to Wellington and would be back on Sunday September 16 just before 9:00 a.m. on Thursday
September 13 sway left his house with Chan Sean and drove an ins car approximately 10 kilometres northwest to
the Henderson police station there his passport and a ceremonial Taichi sword were being held pending the outcome of
his assault charges as Shui had since been given a suspended sentence he was able to reclaim these possessions at
11:00 a.m. schway visited a travel agency and purchased the return flight to Melbourne
for himself he then withdrew six thousand four hundred and forty five u.s. dollars in cash and emptied his
safety deposit box once again he ate lunch at Lava dock before returning to the travel agency and purchasing a
return flight to Melbourne fetch and Shawn that afternoon schway drove himself and Chan Chun to
Auckland's International Airport in an ins car investigators obtained CCTV footage which had captured the father
and daughter as they checked in and went through customs they had arrived in Melbourne at 7:40
p.m. on Thursday September 13 more than 48 hours after Annan was the last seen alive at the time the protection order
issued against Shiu was still in place meaning he wasn't permitted to have custody of Chen Xuan according to the
officer in charge of Auckland Airport inspector Richard Middleton a stringent system was in place to prevent an
individual involved in a court custody order from leaving the country with the child however no such allert appeared
when schway left New Zealand with Chan Sean staff from the police customs and the Ministry of Justice were unable to
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his first marriage was still living in Auckland less than two kilometers from her father's home she maintained no
contact with him as ways claimed that grace had run away after he sponsored her to move to New Zealand was false the
truth was the two months after her arrival Shui had traveled to Los Angeles leaving the then 19-year old alone to
fend for herself in a foreign country where she couldn't speak the language grace had begged her father for
financial support but he had refused to get by she managed to find work in fast food restaurants before eventually
meeting a New Zealand I named Shane and completing a financial degree at the University of Auckland she and Shane
then married and had a baby boy in July of 2007 grace and Shane had seen Shui at
a local restaurant but promptly left without speaking to him it wasn't until she saw the news reports that her father
was wanted on suspicion of murdering his wife and abandoning his young child the
grace even knew she had a half-sister feeling heartbroken by this news she issued a public plea asking for her
father to return to New Zealand she told reporters that Shui could be kind when things were going well but
that quote difficult times revealed the character of the person and shreya is somebody that you don't want to upset to
help provide financial assistance for her half-sister grace established a trust for chan Shawn called the little
pumpkin trust she told reporters that she and her husband were considering adopting chan
Shawn but they also understood that Annan's parents may want to take their granddaughter home to China
in Melbourne the Victorian Department of Human Services made a joint decision with its New Zealand counterpart Child
Youth and Family to repatriate Chen Shan to walk hland as soon as her grandmother Xiao ping leo
had been informed of an ins death she immediately made plans to travel to New Zealand to collect her granddaughter on
September 25 10 days after Chang Shan was abandoned the two were reunited in Auckland where photographers captured
the moment the pair wrapped in a tight embrace speaking via an interpreter Xiao ping told ABC radio that she wanted to
take her granddaughter back to China stating she has got nobody apart from me Annan was my only child and she is my
only granddaughter I will do my utmost to bring her up she has called me grandma since she was very young she has
lived in my home in Hunan everyone in my family loves her a New Zealand - judge ordered that Xiao ping be given leave to
apply for a parenting order he also ruled that grace be permitted to have contact with her half-sister by
telephone email and visits when possible the government paid approximately 10,000
to New Zealand dollars in legal fees for scharping to gain custody of Chang Shan
and also covered the costs of an ins funeral while shopping in Shan Shan waited for the legal process to clear
Auckland police attempted to entertain them by taking them to visit a vineyard and see a butterfly show on October 7
2007 after spending 12 days in New Zealand shopping and Chan soon returned to China with Annan's ashes in an open
letter Xiao ping expressed her gratitude to New Zealand's police government and the public for their support and
kindness meanwhile nah in shui had been labeled a fugitive and authorities in both New
Zealand and the United States were on a loan customs records revealed he had entered Los Angeles on September 15
under the visa waiver program which permitted citizens of New Zealand to visit the United States for 90 days
without a visa after the discovery of an ins body a warrant for choir's arrest had been forwarded to Interpol's united
states office and a red notice was issued a task force was formed that included the US Marshal Service the
Federal Bureau of Investigation immigration officers the Los Angeles Police Department and New Zealand police
investigators soon discovered that upon sways arrival to the United States he had briefly stayed at a cheap motel in
Los Angeles Chinatown district but after that the trail went cold [Music] on September 25 the US Marshal Service
published a wanted poster with sways details that appealed to the American public to report any information
regarding his whereabouts the poster indicated that Shiu was 53 years old with black hair and brown eyes
standing at 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighing 200 pounds it was warned that he should be considered armed and
dangerous and could be hiding anywhere in the country a reward of 10,000 u.s. dollars was also offered by the new
zealand police for information leading to an arrest a press conference was held at the u.s. marshals command center in
Los Angeles with the journalists from New Zealand Australia and Chinese American newspapers in attendance as
well as news crews from la television stations by this time schway had been on the run for 10 days u.s. marshal and
commander of the regional task force Tom Hessian told those assembled that there
was nothing to indicate that Shiu had left Los Angeles he stated quote he's in our country we want to get him and we're
going to send him back to New Zealand one journalist asked why the Interpol red notice had been issued only after an
ins body was identified which was four days after Shui had fled to Los Angeles New Zealand's police liaison officer
superintendent Neville Matthews responded what I can say to you is it was expedited extremely quickly much
more quickly than we have done in the past when the journalist continued to probe chief Hessian asked frankly sir
are you just trying to bash the officers chief Hessian said he was confident that
the US authorities would capture shui he cautioned civilians against taking matters into their own hands if they
spotted the fugitive stating quote we do not know his state of mind we do not know whether he is extremely violent
or whether he has armed himself in some way I don't want to see anybody get hurt
over the following months several confirmed sightings of Shiu came through in October 2007 he was spotted in the
Texas city of Houston driving a 1996 blue Ford Thunderbird with Texas license plates investigators were unable to
locate him but they told reporters they believed he may have been living in Texas for approximately one month the
following month a segment about the case was broadcast on the television program
America's Most Wanted which prompted more tip-offs two months later on January 23 2008 Shiu was sighted driving
the same Ford Thunderbird this time in the mississippi city of Biloxi approximately 414 miles east of Houston
despite these sightings schway continued to evade authorities in February 2008 400 miles northeast of
Biloxi in the Georgia city of Chamblee a group of six Chinese Americans befriended a newcomer who was looking to
settle down locally the man had introduced himself as mr. Tang a masseur who was eager to set up a massage
business nearby he was sharing a room with one of the individuals a man named to Garson Wu
Garson liked mr. Tang as he appeared to be friendly although he often talked and
cried throughout the night on Saturday February 23 mr. Tang offered to show his new group of friends some kungfu poses
and one that he demonstrated caught their attention a photograph of a man performing the
same pose had recently been published in the American Chinese newspaper world a journal alongside an article about
fugitive annoying shui the group suddenly realized that mr. Tang bore a striking resemblance to the
wanted man the only difference being that he appeared to have recently had a haircut adding to their suspicions was
the fact that mr. Tang had recently changed the license plates on his car from taxes tags to new york ones despite
not ever leaving the state of Georgia realizing that mr. Tang was in fact annoying shui the group called the local
police station and attempted to explain the matter however as they spoke a little English
the officers were unable to understand them after multiple failed efforts to report shui
the Group concocted a plan to capture the fugitive themselves they initially considered alluring him to a restaurant
under the pretense of sharing a meal but concluded that inviting him to a private
residence would be better the group told Shui they were having a party on Thursday February 28th and then started
planning how to take down the martial arts expert when the day arrived Shui entered the apartment unaware of what
was about to take place one of the men was a schooled footballer and he swiftly kicked sway while the
remaining five friends tackled him to the ground schway struggled violently and attempted
to strike his attackers with his elbow but they managed to remove sways pants and used them to hog-tie his legs and
arms together the five men of the group sat on shui while the one woman miss Chan called the police when officers
arrived at the scene the group showed them the newspaper article about nine shui and relinquished their hold on him
although Shui was having some trouble breathing he was otherwise unharmed the attending officers searched the
restrained suspect and discovered his New Zealand driver's license as well as six and a half thousand US dollars in
cash he was promptly placed under arrest and taken into custody at the Chamblee police station in a subsequent press
conference chief of Chamblee police mark johnson told the media that although shui was somewhat dirty and smelly he
appeared to be in good health chief Johnson added quote it's not a pretty picture for the martial arts
expert he ended up with these pants around his ankles and tied up the police praised the group for their successful
citizen's arrest and denoted that they would be nominated for an award for their bravery
one of the individuals involved with the arrest told the press quote I am NOT a hero as
a Chinese person living overseas I feel I have the responsibility to help catch him the arrest of an international
fugitive was a significant moment for the small city of Chamblee which had just twenty two police officers
overseeing its population of 10,000 a spokesperson for the police department called it a once-in-a-lifetime event and
said his officers were quote pumped about it the relevant agencies were informed of the arrest and Shiu was the
later transferred to the nearby DeKalb County Jail to await deportation as he had already overstayed the 90-day visit
permitted under the visa waiver program he could be deported back to New Zealand
without the need for a lengthy intro and our extradition process a little over a
week after his capture US authorities escorted Shiu who was manacled by the wrists and ankles on a flight back to
walk 'land he arrived on Monday March 10 2008 and appeared before a judge the same day
nine Shiu was charged with the murder of his wife Annan Leo and a bail was denied
detective Senior Sergeant Simon Scott told reporters quote we're just happy to have him back in New Zealand over the
next few weeks and months we'll look at the evidence and to consider further charges in due course a preliminary
hearing to determine whether there was enough evidence the Sante Shwetha trial was scheduled for September in the lead
up sways barrister Chris Comiskey revealed that his client intended to argue that he was being framed
according to shui a min Annan had met several weeks prior to her death was responsible for the murder and had then
hid her body in choir's car to pass the blame upon learning of the man's plot Shiu had panicked and fled the country
with Chen Xuan mr. Comiskey stated that he would be hiring a private investigator to track down the
individual for questioning on September 3 2008 choir's preliminary hearing began in Auckland's district
court the prosecution presented evidence that after a series of steadily escalating violent incidents Annan had
died of ligature strangulation at the hands of her husband schway openly wept has the pathologist
to detailed how an ins body had been found in the boot of choir's car with a yellow tie wrapped around her neck six
other witnesses also gave evidence but due to strict restrictions regarding media coverage of the hearing their
testimonies were not made public after two days the two justices of the peace presiding over the hearing determined
there was enough evidence to send no inche way to trial for the death of his wife he was ordered to remain in custody
until his trial in Auckland's High Court the trial began nine months later on June 1 2009 in front of an all-female
jury with the Justice Hugh Williams presiding prosecutor Aaron Perkins informed the court the sways marriage to
Annan had not only been loveless and cold but was also marred by abuse and violence
he called 95 witnesses to the stand as part of his case including an ins mother Xiao Peng who gave evidence from China
via videolink and a translator clearly grief-stricken scharping explained that she had never met her son-in-law in
person and had only spoken to him twice over the phone around September 11 2007 the last day Annan was seen alive
Xiao Peng had tried calling her daughter's mobile phone repeatedly because she hadn't heard from her and
had a quote bad feeling schway had eventually answered the phone the following day and told shopping that
Annan had gone to Wellington with Chan Sean although shopping had been suspicious of
Shui his answer placated her and she felt somewhat reassured at the conclusion of her testimony judge
Williams inquired after the well-being of Chang Shan shopping gave a heated and tearful responds in Mandarin which was
not translated for the court as it was deemed too controversial the court was presented with the CCTV footage recorded
at Southern Cross station which showed Shui abandoning Chan soon before making his way to Melbourne Airport evidence
was also presented about the discovery of an ins body as well as her injuries and cause of death with mr. Perkins
contending that shui had strangled his wife with his own tire before dumping her body in the boot of his vehicle
however as no blood or sign of a struggle had been found anywhere in the couple's home mr. Perkins acknowledged
that investigators had been unable to find evidence as to where Annan had been murdered forensic scientists
sally-ann Harbison told the court that Annan's underwear which was also recovered from the boot contained the
DNA of three males she noted quote the major components correspond to choir's DNA with the minor trace components
present from at least two further male individuals choir's DNA was also found on the tire along with DNA from one of
the mystery men ms Harbison confirmed that DNA could survive a washing machine cycle that clarified that quote it is
unusual and it would be surprising to find so many contributors once again the defense presented sways claims that
another man was responsible for Anand death which they argued was the result of quote rough sex gone wrong sways
barista Chris Comiskey told the court that Annan had developed feelings for Wei Hong song
the truck driver she had bordered with in Wellington after escaping the violence in her home to support his case
mr. Comiskey read aloud from an online conversation Annan had with a friend in it Annan said she'd had never been
interested in sex prior to meeting Wei Hong song but she had developed a crush on him that made her feel quote sexually
ferocious like a wolf Wei Hong testified that he and Annan never had a sexual relationship regardless mr. Comiskey
used the ambiguity of an ins message to support schweiz defense that Annan had died as a result of erotic asphyxiation
a type of sexual activity that involves cutting off an individual's air supply mr. Comiskey asked pathologist Timothy
Cole Maya whether it was possible that Hannan's death had been an accident mr. Cole Mayer initially stated he
couldn't answer that question but then remarked if an answer is required I can only say it's possible knowing
shui listened intently to the entirety of the trial via translator but did not take the stand to testify in his own
defense on Friday June 29 more than four weeks after the trial had commenced the jury
retired to consider their verdict they deliberated for a day before returning to court around midday on Saturday June
30 findingnine schway guilty of murdering and in live when the verdict was read aloud
schway raised a fist in the air and cried out unfair I'm innocent I'm innocent he was restrained by guards but
continued his outburst by repeatedly shouting unfair unfair really unfair he struggled as two security guards
escorted him from the courtroom sentencing took place a month later on July 31 2009 with Shiu remaining subdued
throughout the proceedings judge Williams noted that Shiu was only able to concoct his defense that another man
was responsible for an ins murder because the prosecution was required to disclose the information about the DNA
fragments from two unknown males being recovered from an ins underwear and the tie around her neck however judge
Williams clarified that the amount of choir's DNA found on those items far outweighed the smaller traces belonging
to the two unknown persons judge Williams continued quote the jury must have regarded as literally incredible
the suggestion that it was a mere coincidence that your wife died at about the time you made very considerable
efforts to leave first New Zealand and then Australia with as much money as possible as quickly as possible
the pointers to your having murdered your wife though circumstantial were very significant indeed the pointers
towards another man or men having murdered her were slight judge Williams said he had taken into
account a number of aggravating factors including choir's previous history of violence and death threats against
Tannen his efforts to evade detection by fleeing overseas and the cruelty of the
murder itself quote Annan was killed by strangulation everyone has choked on occasions and who
knows how frightening it is to be unable to breathe even for only a few seconds here you subjected your wife to about 45
seconds of what must have been excruciating terror lost you were corroding her until she lost
consciousness and your determination to kill her was such you continued to apply
pressure to the tire for about another two to three minutes to ensure she died judge Williams also noted choir's
cruelty in abandoning his young daughter in a foreign country but acknowledged this wouldn't impact sentencing as it
wasn't included in the charges against him he sentenced sway to life in prison the mandatory sentence for murder in New
Zealand but with a minimum of just 12 years before he would be eligible for parole
schway was removed to serve his sentence at REE Mitaka prison in Upper heart 650
kilometers south of Auckland outside court choir's barrister Chris Comiskey told the media that his client
maintained his innocence and would soon be lodging an appeal he added that Shiu was sorry for abandoning Chan Shawn
stating he regrets that and he will regret that all of his life on September 7 2009 schwas legal team
filed for appeal on the grounds that the jury should have been sequestered throughout the trial due to the
high-profile nature of their case a provisional appeal date was scheduled for May 4 2011 but on April 29 just 5
days before the hearing was set to commence schwas legal team filed papers abandoning the appeal for unreported
reasons despite this Shiu continued to insist upon his innocence New Zealand's Corrections Department received multiple
requests from Chinese language newspaper the New Zealand Chinese Herald to interview Shui but these requests were
consistently denied on the grounds that any interview would likely have a negative impact on an ins family
regardless in 2010 a reporter informed the corrections department that the publication had received the 10 page
document authored by schway two years later in 2012 a book based on this document was published by the New
Zealand Chinese Herald titled I was not the murderer in the book Shui argued for his innocence with one
excerpt to reading the whole world has accused me of being a murderer but I dare not even kill a chicken
not to mention kill my wife given that the document wasn't the result of an unauthorized interview the corrections
department was unable to prohibit its publication and the book was sold in a number of Chinese supermarkets
throughout Auckland the only action that the corrections department could take was to urge the New Zealand Chinese
Herald to consider the effect the publication might have on the victims family on March 9 2020 almost twelve and a half
years after an ins murder Nanyan choise parole hearing was held at the Spring Hill Corrections Facility using a
translator schway finally admitted to being guilty of killing his wife he shared that
during his time in prison he had become an avid painter and a devout Christian his prison record revealed he was well
behaved and appeared to adhere to rules and regulations when the parole board asked Shui how he had addressed his
propensity for violence he responded firstly I'm very remorseful I would like to apologize to everyone who has been
hurt schway claimed that in 2010 he realized that just how serious his crime was and that he needed to take
responsibility for the offense he told the parole board he had killed Anand because of his extremely bad temper
which was triggered by their differences in opinion schway stated at the time divorce would have served the problem I
should not have committed this kind of extremely serious mistake however choir's claimed that he had taken
responsibility as early as 2010 seemed unlikely given that he was still appealing his innocence up until 2011
when asked whether abducting his daughter and abandoning her in Melbourne was also a mistake
schway replied yes at the time I brought my child to Australia in order to escape
from this it was very inconvenient to bring her along he explained that when he saw police
were present at Southern Cross station he had concluded it would be safe to leave chanchan there as she would be
looked after by law enforcement the parole board ultimately rejected Shui supplication although his parole
assessment report stated that he was at low risk of reoffending a psychological report concluded the opposite moreover
if released schway would be required to undertake a group rehabilitation program that was
conducted entirely in English and it was determined that his English was not fluent enough for him to participate
sway is scheduled to reappear in front of the parole board in March 2021 for his next hearing following sways arrest
and conviction New Zealand's Family Violence court came under scrutiny as politicians and the public questioned
why he had ever been in a position where he could harm his wife given his history
of domestic violence in 2009 then mayor of white Akari Bob Harvey spoke out against a judge fill record Dawn's
decision to give Shui a suspended sentence for his brutal assault against Danone stating I'm absolutely bloody
appalled I feel sometimes the court system fails families and fails women and too this is a real example of that
there's something seriously wrong here too many people for reasons I can not understand are let off with the warnings
and a slap on the wrist and it's got to stop judge record on refused to comment on
the grounds that quote constitutional convention required that judges don't discuss specific cases in the media
chief district court judge Russell Johnson came to judge record ons defense telling reporters that prison sentences
weren't suitable for a large number of cases brought before the family violent court and may actually deter victims
from reporting their abuses Ashe way had no previous convictions at the time judge record Donn had been attempting to
give the family their best chance at reconciling and had no way of knowing that tragedy would resolve despite this
assertion sways abusive and controlling behavior towards Annan met a number of key risk factors that were outlined in a
2007 New Zealand report on domestic violence risk assessments titled living at the cutting edge the report found
that a recent or planned separation often precedes a domestic violence homicide as does escalating levels of
violence and controlling behavior additionally have victims perception that their life is in danger was noted
as one of the most reliable indicators of them being at genuine risk and in circumstances prior to her murder met
all three of these risk factors after a 2014 report found that about half of the
country's homicides were committed by an offender who belongs to the victim's family there have been some changes to
New Zealand's Family Violence laws in 2018 New Zealand Parliament passed the Family Violence Act to replace the 1995
domestic violence Act among other updates this revised the legislation prioritizes the safety and well-being of
victims during sentencing decisions and to requires victim informed assessment centre program
on march 18 2007 the group of Chinese Americans who successfully conspired to capture nyan Shui were formally
recognized for their bravery they received certificates of appreciation from the town of chamblee and were told
they would also receive the $10,000 reward that was on offer for information leading to choir's arrest the group
hadn't been aware of the reward but quickly agreed on how to spend the money they decided to donate two thousand
dollars to an elderly friend who was unable to care for himself and to give the remaining eight thousand dollars to
Chen Xuan Shui the little pumpkin trust fund established by Chan Sean's half-sister grace attracted a total of
40,000 New Zealand Dollars that money remains untouched in a secure new zealand bank account where it continues
to accumulate interest after returning to China in 2007 Chen Xiang settled into her new life and has thrived ever since
friend of the family pansy Wang stated she's a very mature and sensible girl she's been to her mum's grave to pay her
respects chan Sean's family have expressed their desire to give her as much privacy as possible but have also
shared their gratitude to New Zealanders for their support in an ins final blog entry which was published at around
midnight the day before her murder she wrote about the grief and sorrow she was experiencing in her life however she
also reflected on the importance of remembering happier times writing at the end of bad luck brightness will
come I will keep the good memories in mind it's what you have already had and cherish that won't end
[Music] you [Music]

Case 149: Anan Liu

Thinking the toddler might have been lost, the couple approached and attempted to speak to her. When she didn’t respond, they beckoned a Victoria Rail employee over to see if he could help...

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research – Holly Boyd Writing – Erin Munro Creative direction – Milly Raso Production, scoring – Mike Migas and Andrew Joslyn

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RESOURCES

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Brief Summary

The episode covers the abandonment of Chen Xuan Shui and the murder of her mother, Annan Leo, by her father, Nian Shui.

Key points

Pumpkin's Abandonment. A toddler, nicknamed Pumpkin, was found abandoned at Southern Cross station.
Annan's Body Discovered. Police found the body of Annan Leo in her husband's car, leading to a murder investigation.
Domestic Violence Unveiled. Annan's relationship with Shui becomes increasingly controlling, revealing signs of domestic violence.
A Violent Confrontation. Shui violently attacks Annan, threatening her life and injuring their daughter.
Annan's Final Blog Entry. Annan's last blog post reflects her deep loneliness and despair before her tragic fate.
Shui's Fugitive Status. After Annan's death, Shui becomes a fugitive, evading authorities in multiple countries.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It is our greatest wish that someone knows something.

Appeal for information about Sarah's disappearance.

0:27WatchJul 11, 2020

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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