An American studying in London phoned his father and a solicitor before calling an ambulance after allegedly stabbing his partner, a court has heard.
Joshua Michals, 26, is on trial at the Old Bailey for the murder of 31-year-old Zhe Wang, a fellow student at Goldsmiths, University of London.
Ms Wang, was found with two stab wounds to her face at her flat in Manor Park, Lewisham, south-east London, after the defendant called 999 on March 20 2024.
Michals denies the charge and has claimed he had put his arm on her neck in self-defence because she was trying to attack him.
A post-mortem examination revealed Ms Wang, from China, died from stab wounds to the head and compression to the neck, the court heard.
(Credits: In Pictures via Getty Images)
Giving evidence on Thursday, Michals said: ‘I had to restrain her, I put out my forearm to restrain her and, before I knew it, she’d stopped breathing.’
Prosecutor Henrietta Paget KC put to him that he had ‘flown into a rage’ and killed her and he replied: ‘I was never angry at any point in the incident’.
He claimed Ms Wang attacked him after she incorrectly believed she might have caught a sexually transmitted disease. He said he did not mean to kill her.
Michals called his father and obtained the details for a solicitor before arriving at his flat and phoning an ambulance, the court heard.
He also took Ms Wang’s phone from her kitchen and put it in a bin outside, jurors were told.
Michals said he recalls ‘having it in (his) possession’ and throwing it away but does not remember taking the device from the kitchen.
Cell-site data suggested Ms Wang’s phone was near her flat until the following morning and it was recovered days later at a refuse area in Newham, east London, jurors were told.
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A recycling plant worker had found the phone and disposed of it in her household waste after she could not get into it, the court has heard.
Michals’ 999 call was paraphrased by Ms Paget, who said the operator asked ‘is the patient breathing’ and he responded: ‘I don’t think so.’
The handler asked him to explain what is happening, and what he could see, and he gave the address of Ms Wang’s flat for an ambulance, the court heard.
‘So, you have to say I’m not there anymore’, Ms Paget said.
Jurors heard that Michals gave the operator his address in Deptford, south-east London, ‘if you want to send the police over to me’.
‘They want some context – you say it’s a very serious incident, not a road accident or anything like that. You say it’s in a flat, it’s in a flat.’
Asked what was ‘in the flat’, he told jurors: ‘Just the incident.’
He also said to the operator: ‘Just send the help there. Then send the officer over for me.’
The line went dead and the court heard he called his dad before he was phoned back by a paramedic.
During the second call, Michals told emergency services: ‘I don’t know how any of this works, it’s f****** too much.’
Ms Wang was found dead and photographs shown to the jury showed her face on the floor near a bed with blood surrounding her.
Michals was arrested and jurors heard that when officers asked if it understood why, he said: ‘It’s not what it seems.’
The defendant agreed when Ms Paget asked: ‘So, you must have been anxious to put them right?’
The prosecutor put to him: ‘You’re saying I restrained her and before I knew it she’d stopped breathing.’
He replied ‘correct’, and the prosecutor asked why he did not say that to police.
Michals said: ‘As I’ve said, I was advised to go no comment.’
Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, Michals studied filmmaking at university before coming to London to pursue a year-long, master’s degree at Goldsmiths.
The younger of two siblings, he previously told jurors that his father was the vice president of sales at his company and his mother was a graphic designer and photographer.
Michals met Ms Wang, a creative writing student, on campus when he went to enrol and collect his identification.
Several statements from his fellow students were read to the court that said they were not aware he was dating anyone.
One friend described him as: ‘Super personable, very outgoing and talkative – he is very talented and was always down to go out.’
The trial continues.