Mum charged with 10yo daughter’s murder after TikTok clips faces major psychiatric report delay
The case against a mum charged with the murder of her young daughter after posting TikToks is facing another delay.
A mum charged with the murder of her 10-year-old daughter after allegedly posting a Tiktok clip where she claimed the devil was “interfering” with her soul faces a further wait in custody on remand due to a second psychiatric report being prepared.
Yingying Xu, 46, is charged with the murder of her daughter Sophie Wang after emergency services made the grisly discovery at a home in the leafy Gold Coast suburb of Emerald Lakes last year.
The case has continued to languish for months due to referrals to the Mental Health Court and prosecutors awaiting a decision on psychiatric reports.
Ms Xu is alleged to have murdered Sophie on August 13, 2024.
The child’s father Dr Yun Wang discovered his daughter grievously injured with her throat slashed just after 6pm at their Emerald Lakes home, in Carrara, and phoned triple-0.
Emergency services attempted to revive the Emmanuel College year 5 student, but she died at the scene.
Ms Xu was arrested in a nearby street after 10.25pm that same night.
Police allege Ms Xu posted a number of TikTok videos before killing her daughter where, speaking Chinese, she claimed “the devil Satan has been telling me that he has been influencing … interfering with my soul”.
She is alleged to have said: “Then he will take 100 per cent captive, occupy my soul and go to the end of times.”
It is further alleged she espoused Christian beliefs, referring to the “trinity” as the “only true god” and said “Jesus is the incarnate son of man”.
The posts have since been deleted.
Ms Xu was not required to appear before Southport Magistrates Court when her matter was briefly mentioned on Friday morning.
Defence lawyer Maddison Abela, from Rawlings McShane Lawyers said she was seeking leave to withdraw from the matter due to Legal Aid taking over the matter.
After being called over the speaker, solicitor Rachel Barnes asked for a lengthy adjournment, noting the Mental Health Court referral on the file.
A psychiatrist report had been completed but a second one would take “months”, she said.
Ms Xu’s matter will return to court on August 1. She was remanded in custody.
The child’s death provoked profound grief in the tight-knight Gold Coast community and from her school.
Dozens of people made touching tributes to Sophie at a candlelight vigil in Emerald Lakes, just a few streets from her home.
At the time, Detective Acting Inspector Kent Ellis said the scene was “incredibly confronting”, with members of both the Queensland Police Service and paramedics set to receive support.
“In my 15-year career as a detective it’s one of the most confronting scenes I have seen,” he told reporters on the day Sophie’s body was found.
Sophie’s school Emmanuel College hosted a service the same morning to pay tribute to her, with principal Dan Brown describing the child as a “compassionate and caring” young girl who loved her academics.
“I knew Sophie as a student and I had interactions with her,” he said.
“She was a very bright young lady. She loved reading – she was a great reader.
“She was a great friend. She was known as being compassionate and caring. She loved music.
“Those memories will live on.”