Deceased/Not Found IL - Yingying Zhang, 26, Urbana, 9 June 2017 #3 *Arrest*

[DocBrew]

Thanks for the clarification. But if he had truly just dropped her off, what are the odds that YZ would then almost immediately encounter a second person with a strong interest in kidnapping? Astronomical. I personally think that the "other evidence and facts" or however it was worded in the affadavit that led LE to believe her dead, which has not been made public yet, is probably irrefutable. Definitely JMO.

I don't disagree that he is the likely culprit. I just hope there is some physical evidence to show that A) she was in distress while in his car (to support kidnapping charge) and B) she was at his home (to support their surveillance). If not, the case will be extremely tough to prove against his narrative that he picked her up and dropped her off. A good lawyer can spin anything.

JMO.

 

[Tinypeeps]

I don't disagree that he is the likely culprit. I just hope there is some physical evidence to show that A) she was in distress while in his car (to support kidnapping charge) and B) she was at his home (to support their surveillance). If not, the case will be extremely tough to prove against his narrative that he picked her up and dropped her off. A good lawyer can spin anything.

JMO.

Agreed. I hope so too. I actually think they found physical evidence Friday. Blood, most likely. Without physical evidence in hand I don't see LE having quite this level of certainty that she is dead.

 

[PhoneJockey]

This Chinese article contains a composite sketch rendered using the surveillance footage. Pretty good given the circumstances!

http://news.sina.com.cn/c/nd/2017-07-03/doc-ifyhrxsk1604163.shtml

They were very generous with the hairline, though

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[Webthrush]

Since BC was such a widespread user of internet sites am wondering if anyone has tried to sleuth whether he is registered on THIS site (Websleuths)!?

 

[PhoneJockey]

That's not what I read in the complaint. They say they have him under surveillance talking to someone (re: not a sworn officer) *claiming* that he picked her up and took her back to his place, but unless LE can offer physical evidence that she was either at his home or in his car against her will, then his "confession" can be explained away by a good lawyer.

This is my earlier post that I think citigirl was referencing:

It will all come down to the wording of what he said, which none of us know because they audio is not currently available to the public and may never be.

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[PhoneJockey]

Perhaps he is the only one that can access his fb. I hope he's uncomfortable tonight... YES, his digital footprint is ridiculous, and testament to his age group, no offense intended. It's so transparent, it makes me suspicious. If this is what he was showing, what was he hiding?!

What status update? I'm not seeing anything like that so maybe it has been removed.

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[daisy.faithfull]

Since BC was such a widespread user of internet sites am wondering if anyone has tried to sleuth whether he is registered on THIS site (Websleuths)!?

I don't know about being a member, but I always wonder if the monsters that commit the crimes discussed on this site are lurking. I try not to think about it because it gives me the heebie jeebies. In this case, I'd say that its pretty likely he's visited.

 

[Nick_1]

Question: for those familiar with criminal complaints: if the "other occupant" was his wife, would they have referred to the other occupant as his wife?

I noticed one user who was verified as an attorney posted earlier this evening, they'd have the definitive answer, (presuming they practice criminally). Educated guess that it it could be either wife (are we sure that's he married, btw? I'm not talking like facebook as a source) or roommate. An attorney would know best.

 

[Nick_1]

No, that was not detailed. It seemed intentionally vague, imo, as typically names are named in this type of complaint. As if they're proactively concealing the source. I think it's the most logical option given what we know, but I can't be sure.

Google Stingray. I'm guessing it's still around (at least to a certain extent). I reread the order and it does state that a search of the suspect's cellular device was conducted.

I have no clue if Stingray was used in this case. It used to be fairly widespread up until a few years ago.

Stingray is a pretty crazy tool. I'd recommend all sleuthers to read the Wikipedia page on it, if you feel so inclined.

Just my thoughts

 

[Webthrush]

I assume police have had tracking data on BC’s vehicle for awhile now… would think that might lead them to search various specific sites with cadaver dogs. Has anyone heard of ANY significant searches for the body going on ANYwhere? Strange.

 

[Millhouse]

Perhaps he is the only one that can access his fb. I hope he's uncomfortable tonight... YES, his digital footprint is ridiculous, and testament to his age group, no offense intended. It's so transparent, it makes me suspicious. If this is what he was showing, what was he hiding?!

Is it a testament to his age group, or a testament to him? IMO, he might have also been sloppy if he was planning something using another technique. Digital stuff is not unique to me- it's just another tool with a lot of unique issues to think about. If he was actually plotting this, I think this is more about his sloppiness or overconfidence. Even if he wasn't planning the original kidnapping, it's amazing to me that he didn't try to clean some of this up after it happened and before he was arrested.

 

[million21]

I assume police have had tracking data on BC’s vehicle for awhile now… would think that might lead them to search various specific sites with cadaver dogs. Has anyone heard of ANY significant searches for the body going on ANYwhere? Strange.

If he got his car cleaned after the fact this would be irrelevant, but couldn't police find trace evidence on his car to determine his whereabouts? For instance a certain pollen type in his windshield wipers, dirt/gravel type in his tires... I've seen a case before where they found traces of pollen from a unique tree that only grew in a specific wooded walking trail where the body was found - hence linking the accused's car to the area/scene. Although I don't know how well this would stand up in court; you could easily argue contamination. Now we know BC is pleading not guilty the chance of him disclosing this information himself is slim to none.

 

[Skigirl]

Question: for those familiar with criminal complaints: if the "other occupant" was his wife, would they have referred to the other occupant as his wife?

My opinion based on nothing other than reading a lot of search warrant affidavits and criminal complaints is that LE knew the complaint would eventually be made public and were being intentionally vague.

 

[WebWoman]

My reasoning is that he's a LIAR. His apartment building has a single entryway, with no exterior access and parking is not near that entry. There are no attached garages either. I don't believe he could have moved her from the parking lot, through the secured entryway (I wonder if there is an electronic log of entries), and into the apartment in broad daylight without being seen.
You can peruse the floor plans here.
http://www.roysebrinkmeyer.com/champaign/stonegate-village/
Google Street view was very informative as well.

I believe he was caught on audio recording recounting a half truth, half fantasy brag. I believe the person he was speaking to was someone he thought might be supportive of and impressed by an abduction.

in my opinion I don't think he was lying about taking her to his apartment against her will especially since he went on to say things that have made the FBI certain enough that she is no longer alive and announce it. (Btw I'm obsessed with how cheap rent is out there).

Also there's a link to an article posted in earlier pages where someone says Christensen was a member of their 12 people 5am weight lifting class for years and was the only person in the group who didn't socialize with others. He would be with another girl both wearing black and they only kept to themselves. I think the girl at the March was also wearing black like him. She might be his wife and maybe he did the kidnapping while she was out of town and was explaining it to her when she returned under surveillance, fearing he'd get caught and wanting to come clean to her.

Or else someone who has been with him for so many years might share the same fettish but maybe was too scared to participate and voluntarily left town when she saw he was intent on carrying out a fantasy. The same article says his OK Cupid profile lists him as married in an open relationship <modsnip>

 

[daisy.faithfull]

in my opinion I don't think he was lying about taking her to his apartment against her will especially since he went on to say things that have made the FBI certain enough that she is no longer alive and announce it. (Btw I'm obsessed with how cheap rent is out there).

I agree with you Webwoman. I don't know how he got her to his apartment, but I believe that is where he took her. BC was brazen enough to pick Yingying up in broad daylight, I think he was brazen enough to force her to his apartment. Tragically, BC was very lucky, hopefully his luck has run out. Regarding the audio recording, I think he may have also admitted/bragged about killing her to someone he connected with on the fetish website. As twisted as abduction fetishes and fetish websites may seem, the latter may have helped put BC behind bars.

 

[GigTu]

Someone asked about the meaning of the character Christensen has used for various online profiles. It is a Chinese character that is used in the writing of Japanese and Korean, as well as Chinese. In all three, it means "sky" or "heavens."
https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/&#22825;

Also, as a native Japanese speaker, I found his Steam username, "Akuma - 100% Isaac Afterbirth+" particularly interesting; "akuma" is the Japanese word for demon.
http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198074575257

Isaac Afterbirth is the title of a video game, afterbirth referencing a sequel version. If you examine his steam profile, it shows he's changed his title multiple times, and it seems the 100% portion means he was on that game 100%. If you examine his hours spent in the past weeks that Yingying has been missing, he did introduce two new games to his playing itinerary during that time. Based on the hours spent with each, they were probably new games he was trying out.

 

[daisy.faithfull]

I don't think that the woman he is holding hands with at the march for Yingying is his wife. There is a picture of BC and his wife in one of the articles, and while her face is pixilated out, you can see that she has very dark hair. The woman at the march with him looks like she has lighter hair. I wish that the articles would think to pixelate her face out as well. I guess people that know her would recognize her, but I'm sure its difficult to have pictures out there indicating you have what looks to be a close relationship with a man who has been arrested for the abduction of, and likely murdered, a woman.

Link to article with picture of BC and his wife:
http://heavy.com/news/2017/06/brendt-christensen-yingying-zhang-brent-facebook-photos-suspect/

 

[DocBrew]

Any news about the female body found? I know it sounded like a long shot, but would still like to rule it out.

 

[inmyhumbleopinion]

This Chinese article contains a composite sketch rendered using the surveillance footage. Pretty good given the circumstances!

http://news.sina.com.cn/c/nd/2017-07-03/doc-ifyhrxsk1604163.shtml

Wow! I don't know how to use Google Translate on my phone and am also running out of time, but I wonder if the article says who the sketches were done by. The FBI, or a member of the public who was able to enhance the video footage? Look at the facial hair ... very good!

 

[Gardener1850]

Any news about the female body found? I know it sounded like a long shot, but would still like to rule it out.

Sherriff confirmed it's not YingYing, it's a middle aged white woman: http://www.wjbc.com/2017/07/03/woma...s-no-apparent-link-to-missing-illini-scholar/