Chinese national Tingjun Cao is appealing against his conviction and sentence for murdering Christchurch real estate agent Yanfei Bao, on the grounds of a miscarriage of justice.
Cao, 54, was jailed for life for killing Bao after luring her to a Hornby house under the pretence of viewing the property for sale in July 2023.
At his High Court sentencing in June, Bao’s family spoke of the unbearable loss of a daughter, wife and mother, describing Cao as a “despicable monster”.
The Court of Appeal confirmed Cao filed the appeal on July 11, although a hearing date was yet to be set.
According to court documents seen by RNZ, Cao claimed the grounds of appeal were a “miscarriage of justice” at trial, to be particularised once his lawyers had reviewed his case.
At sentencing, lawyer Colin Eason told the court Cao maintained his innocence and denied any involvement in Bao’s death.
Cao had blamed a mysterious “Mr Tang” for the murder, but he was never identified.
Immigration New Zealand was also making arrangements for Cao to be deported when he was released from prison.
Acting national compliance manager Damon Treadaway said Cao was served a deportation notice in June.
“We can confirm that Mr Cao was served a deportation liability notice on June 19, 2025. He is currently serving a prison sentence and arrangements are underway for his deportation following the completion of that sentence,” he said in a statement.
“It is standard practice for individuals who are liable for deportation and serving a custodial sentence to be deported following their release.”
Cao attacked Bao at the Hornby house, bundled her into the boot of his car and drove to a remote rural road near Lincoln where he killed her.
He buried the 44-year-old mother-of-one in a shallow grave along the treeline of a Greenpark farm where police found her remains almost a year later.
Bao’s husband reported her missing the day she vanished after discovering his wife had not collected her daughter from an after-school programme, had not come home for lunch and calls to her phone went unanswered.
Police found Bao’s phone in grass beside the southern motorway two days later.
Cao was arrested at Christchurch Airport in the days after her disappearance with a one-way ticket to Shanghai.
He was initially charged with Bao’s kidnapping but the charge was later dropped and a murder charge laid in September 2023.
At his sentencing, Cao was removed from the court by Corrections officers after regularly interjecting and interrupting the hearing with outbursts, including ripping up papers and throwing them on the floor.
In a victim impact statement read to the court on her behalf, Bao’s daughter told Cao, “you took my mummy away from me and my life has not been the same since. I miss my mummy every single day”.
The prosecution had described the case against Cao as an “absolute slam dunk” with compelling and overwhelming evidence demonstrating his guilt.
He would not be eligible for parole until 2041.
By Jean Edwards of rnz.co.nz