Lake Haven: Zhenguo ‘Peter’ Yang pleads guilty to stabbing ex-wife in furious attack

An elderly man lured his ex-wife to his house after getting back from overseas only to attack her in a wild stabbing frenzy before going to her place and smashing up her kitchen, a court heard.

Zhenguo ‘Peter’ Yang stabbed his ex-wife multiple times outside his Lake Haven address. (File image)

An elderly man told police he wanted to reunite with his ex-wife but her rejection was “too much to bear” before he lured her to his house and stabbed her repeatedly, a court has heard.

Zhenguo “Peter” Yang, 70, appeared via video link at Wyong Local Court on Tuesday where his solicitor pleaded guilty on his behalf to breaching an apprehended violence order (AVO), breaking and entering with intent to destroy property and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Following his guilty pleas a further charge of attempted murder was withdrawn and dismissed.

An agreed set of facts states Yang was aged 68 when he returned from a trip to China on May 13 last year.

He had married his wife, known as “Wendy”, in 2012 but divorced around April 2020.

The rented house at 43 Pacific Highway, Lake Haven, where Zhenguo "Peter" Yang stabbed his ex-wife multiple times. Picture: Google Maps

The facts state after their separation they lived together from time to time but on November 11, 2022, they had a fight where both suffered injuries and police took out an AVO on Yang.

On his return Yang asked Wendy, then aged 56, to meet him at his new address on the Pacific Highway at Lake Haven and return some of his personal items.

Yang faced Wyong Local Court on Tuesday where he pleaded guilty.

She arrived about 8pm but he pointed to his chest, indicating he couldn’t lift the suitcases because of his recent heart surgery.

“The offender asked the victim to move the suitcases closer to the house but as she was walking with the first suitcase, the offender started attacking her,” the facts state.

“The victim saw blood coming from above her right eye before she felt any pain. There was so much blood that the victim could not see properly. She saw the offender continually strike her in a stabbing motion.

“The offender stabbed the victim to the left side of her head and blood poured out immediately. By this stage, the victim had noticed a knife in the offender’s hands and he continued to stab her randomly in her head and body.”

Yang stabbed her “randomly in her head and body,” the facts state.

The facts state neighbours heard the woman’s screams and some looked out their windows but

“immediately returned inside, too afraid”.

One neighbour picked up an aluminium baseball bat and went outside where he saw them both struggling on the ground surrounded by a “large pool of blood”.

After being stabbed Zhenguo Yang's ex-wife took off down a laneway towards Clarkson Lane where she flagged down a passing motorist who called police. Picture: Facebook

He told Yang “don’t move” and sensing his distraction Wendy grabbed the knife and stood up.

Yang also got up and went to lunge at her but the neighbour swung the bat and caught Yang in the ribs while Wendy ran off with the knife.

She ran off towards Clarkson Lane and flagged down a couple in a passing car who called triple 0.

A short time later Yang left and went looking for her at her house nearby on Holly Close.

Yang broke in and then started smashing the benchtop, stove, fridge and television with a hammer.

Police arrived and arrested him.

Yang participated in a recorded interview at 2am the following morning where he said he was still in love with his ex-wife but when she didn’t want to get back together it was “too much for him to bear”.

He said this made him very angry and by the time he got to her place he didn’t really know what he was doing.

“At that point, ‘love had turned into hatred’ and he had no memory of what occurred at the victim’s home,” the facts state.

Yang was adjourned to Gosford District Court on October 31 to fix a sentence date.