Wei Hu had history of violence before murdering wife Ying Ying Zhou in Nunawading, Melbourne

A librarian who stabbed his wife to death before killing himself made a chilling threat to rape her before the shocking murder-suicide that was witnessed by their young son.

Wei Hu’s history of violence against his wife, Ying Ying Zhou, was revealed in a coronial inquiry into the tragedy which occurred in the driveway of a home in Nunawading, in Melbourne’s east, on September 14, 2019.

After an argument at a McDonald’s, Hu stabbed his wife in the neck with a knife while she sat in their Audi SUV, before plunging the blade into his chest.

Their terrified son, then eight, ran from the car to get help from neighbours, who returned to find the bodies of Hu, 40, and Ms Zhou, 36.

Just a few months earlier, the couple’s marriage had started to break down, with Hu subjecting his wife to a series of disturbing threats, the inquest heard, the Herald Sun reported.

Hu stabbed her to death inside a car with their son in the back seat two months after threatening to rape her and ‘finish her off’ using boiling water

After Ms Zhou asked for a divorce in June, 2019, following 14 years of marriage, the pair started sleeping in separate rooms.

But Hu, 40, began creeping into her room at night and at one point lay beside her and asked for sex.

‘I might come back in sometime tonight and have sex with you, and then you can then call the police on me for rape,’ he told her on July 31, 2019.

Wei Hu’s history of violent control over his wife, and young son was revealed in a coronial inquiry into the tragedy

Investigators are seen at the scene of the tragedy in September, 2019 

The rape threat came after Hu told her he wanted to see a sex worker. 

Hu also exerted violent control over his young son, forcing him to kneel for long periods as a punishment 

Ms Zhou’s parents lived at the family home and often heard Hu shouting threats towards his wife.

On another occasion he told her ‘Do you have to go to the situation where the family is broken, and the people are dead?’ 

Frightened, Ms Zhou asked what he meant.

Hu told her their family would ‘all die together’.

The couple’s marriage faltered after he pressured her to have a second child but she was unable to due to medical issues, the inquest heard.

Hu also exerted violent control over their young son, forcing him to kneel for long periods as a punishment.

He is also believed to have hit the child with a slipper and a chopstick.  

In the week before his chilling rape threat, Hu bombarded Ms Zhou with news articles and texts describing how children of divorces become criminals or attempt suicide.

Another threat from Hu involved him telling his wife he would ‘finish’ her off with a ‘bottle of boiling water’. 

On one occasion, witnessed by Ms Zhou’s parents, Hu stood over his wife and told her he’d ‘fix’ her and would ‘make it more difficult for you to live than to die.’ 

Hu had worked as a library technician at Scotch College, an elite private school in Melbourne where students described him as ‘kind-hearted’.

The incident sent shock waves through the small community after neighbours saw a series of police and ambulance vehicles appear at the property

Ms Zhou reported the abuse to police on August 1, but an investigation found aspects of the handling of complaints prior to the murder-suicide were ‘deficient’.

Hu was ordered to stay away from the family home and was prohibited from committing family violence.

He then moved into the Nunawading home where he would carry out the murder.

Coroner John Cain said key witnesses to the abuse were not interviewed. 

Two days after the July 31 attack police officers interviewed Hu, but their enquiries only lasted two minutes and 24 seconds.

The couple’s son is now cared for by his grandparents. 

Victoria Police underwent an internal review following the deaths of the couple, and made four key recommendations to improve police practices, the inquiry heard.

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