Woman's killer is jailed for life

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A man has been jailed for life after being convicted of murdering his girlfriend whose semi-naked body was found in the boot of a car.

Chang Hai Zhang, 28, was found guilty of killing Qu Mei Na and falsely and injuriously imprisoning her.

He was convicted in his absence as a security operation at Maghaberry prison meant he could not attend court.

Zhang murdered the 22-year-old in his Skegoniel Avenue flat in north Belfast in June 2004.

The judge is expected to set a tariff at a later date.

The body of Ms Na was uncovered in the boot of a car at a garage on the Antrim Road, close to Zhang's home.

She was was identified by dental records. At one stage, PSNI detectives travelled to China to establish who she was.

They travelled to Dalian city in Liaoning province, north-eastern China, and were able to establish that she was the only child of elderly parents.

Last May, Zhang was convicted of the murder on his own guilty plea, which was later set aside, allowing him to deny the murder and later to admit Tina's manslaughter.

During his trial, Zhang claimed he initially intended only to "punish" Tina by tying her up after discovering she was working as a prostitute in Dublin.

Zhang and his cousin, 29-year-old Pang Yang, planned to dispose of her body by dumping it in a remote area and burning the remains.

However, the pair were spotted by a neighbour who spotted them as they bundled the body in the boot of their Ford Escort car. Police caught them a short time later.

Yang, from Glen Road in west Belfast, was jailed for five years for assisting an offender and is already awaiting deportation.