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Police investigating the brutal killing of Elizabeth Zhong in Auckland say she was murdered at her home before her body was placed in the trunk of her car.
But in a brief press conference on Friday, police had little other information to share, nearly a week after the 55-year-old businesswoman’s death.
She died sometime between Friday, November 27, around 4:30 p.m., when she was last seen alive, and on Saturday morning, when police found her Land Rover parked on the corner.
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Elizabeth Zhong pictured in 2016 at her Carrick Winery vineyard in Bannockburn, downtown Otago.
They did not search the trunk of his car, where his body lay, until several hours later, Things understands.
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Acting Detective Inspector Shaun Vickers said Friday that police examination of the scene showed Zhong was dead before her body was placed in the trunk.
Jason Dorday / Stuff
Acting Detective Inspector Shan Vickers says the last confirmed sighting of Elizabeth Zhong was around 4.30pm last Friday.
“We are satisfied that he died inside his home.”
He declined to comment on whether the delay had affected the search for a suspect.
He also declined to comment on whether locks have been placed on someone’s passport to prevent them from fleeing the country after death.
Zhong’s last confirmed sighting was at 4.30pm on Friday, it said.
His family is “understandably devastated” by his death, Vickers said.
No one has been arrested or charged in connection with the homicide investigation.
Police have contacted the Chinese consulate and hope to contact more China-based agencies as the investigation progresses, he said.
At the time of her death, several of Zhong’s businesses were bankrupt and she was heavily in debt to various creditors.
