A man who may have been suffering from a methamphetamines-induced psychosis in January 2008 when he strangled to death a Richmond woman has been sentenced to 12 years in jail.
Xin Fu Zhu, 50, was initially charged with second-degree murder in the slaying of Ruo Yu "Lucy" Cao, 26.
But, on Tuesday, Zhu pleaded guilty to the lesser and included offence of manslaughter.
Cao's body was found in her condo by her landlord after she had not been seen for a time.
Police found a white belt twisted around her neck. She'd been strangled. There was no sign of a struggle in what court heard was an apparently motiveless crime.
Drugs and drug paraphernalia were found in the suite, however, and both Zhu and Cao had been consuming meth at the time of the slaying.
Initially, Zhu denied being in the apartment, but DNA evidence linked him to the scene and he was arrested in April 2010.
In imposing sentence Friday, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Laura Gerow noted that Zhu likely surprised Cao from behind when he strangled her.
"In my view, the fact that Mr. Zhu may have been in a drug-induced psychosis at the time does not take away from the cold-blooded nature of the killing," Gerow said.
"In this case, the aggravating factor is that this was a motiveless killing of a defenceless victim. The mitigating factor is that Mr. Zhu pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter."
The judge imposed a sentence of 12 years on Zhu, a father of four who's been in custody for two years.
Afterward, Cao's mother expressed "special thanks" to the RCMP and the prosecution for their work in the case.
However, she said that, while she was grateful for Canada's legal system, Zhu was lucky because "if this had happened in China, he'd get a death sentence."
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