Inside the vast property portfolio of deadly China poisoning suspect
Jasmine Sun and Ringo Xie have been buying and selling property for at least a decade, and they now have a multimillion-dollar portfolio | PICTURES
A woman at the centre of a mysterious and deadly poisoning that has captivated millions in China for 30 years, and whose associates say won’t return for fear of her life, has been funding her classic Australian suburban lifestyle by buying and flipping million dollar homes for almost a decade.
Last month, The Australian revealed property investor Shiyan “Jasmine” Sun, whose whereabouts have been unknown for decades, was living in the Port Stephens area, on the NSW mid-north coast.
It sparked a petition, which now has about 44,000 signatures, urging Anthony Albanese to deport her to China to face questions over the case, following the death of poisoning victim, Zhu Ling, in December.
According to campaigners seeking justice for the alleged victim, Sun is the prime suspect in the 1994 poisoning of her then-university roommate Zhu, who became mysteriously ill and fell into a coma.
Ms Sun and husband Feiyu “Ringo” Xie have been buying and selling property in NSW for at least a decade, beginning not long after Sun arrived in the country, with the couple now in control of a multimillion-dollar property portfolio.
This is how she built her $10.7m property empire, which includes the sprawling double-storey bungalow overlooking the tranquil waters of the NSW’s mid-north coast, where she currently lives.
Within about a month in 2014, Sun purchased three four and five-bedroom brick homes in Quakers Hill for $630,000, $730,000 and $750,000.
Within a few months at the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022, Ms Sun sold all three properties for $1.05m, $1.2m and $1.38m, making a $1.52m profit on the three properties.
In March 2015, Sun set her sights on the NSW north coast, and purchased a 53ha property about one hour north of Newcastle in Booral for about $950,000, which she still owns.
In 2017, Mr Xie purchased two properties in the same complex in Nelson Bay for $165,000 a piece.
Ms Sun made a $120,000 profit on the two properties after selling them in 2020 and 2022.
In 2019, Ms Sun and Mr Xie purchased a 765 sqm property in Nelson Bay, a few streets back from the beach, for $630,000, which the couple sold this month for $1.06m.
Mr Xie purchased a large $2.1m property with water views over Port Stephens at the end of 2021. He also purchased a neighbouring three-bedroom property in February 2022 for $1.76m.
In 2022, Ms Sun bought a $2.06m “waterfront unit with uninterrupted water views” in Soldiers Point, which can be rented out for a holiday stay on Booking.com.
Since Zhu’s death, the Department of Home Affairs has been flooded with reports alleging a property investor living in a small NSW town changed her name and date of birth to enter Australia.
Campaigners and fellow students identified Shiyan Sun as Sun Wei, the chemistry student accused of poisoning Zhu with thallium after allegedly becoming jealous of her university roommate’s talent, popularity and love life.
Previous reporting included claims Ms Sun wasn’t prosecuted due to the Chinese Communist Party links to her grandfather, Sun Yueqi, a high-ranking official, and another relative, a former vice-mayor of Beijing.
Ms Sun said her grandfather had died by the time she was questioned by police.
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