Double murder probe CCTV released

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CCTV images showing the last known movements of Miss Xi

CCTV images showing the last known movements of a woman who was murdered along with her boyfriend at a flat, have been released by police.

Xi Zhou and Zhen Xing Yang, both 25, died after a "frenzied" knife attack in a flat in Newcastle's West End.

The images show Miss Xi on a bus and walking towards the home she shared with Mr Zhen in Croydon Road.

Officers have also appealed to Mr Zhen's best friend and fellow Newcastle graduate Fan Zhang to come forward.

Detectives have now also brought in an offender profiler to help establish a motive for the killings.

The bodies of the victims, from China, were found at the downstairs flat on Saturday afternoon.

Xi Zhou and her boyfriend Zhen Xing Yang studied at Newcastle University

The CCTV images were taken as Miss Xi travelled home from work at the Wagamama restaurant in Newcastle on Thursday afternoon.

Police said Mr Zhen was "assaulted for more than an hour" before being stabbed. They believe passers-by may have heard his screams.

A post-mortem examination revealed he suffered extensive bruising to his arms before he died.

Examinations also showed Miss Xi may have been asphyxiated as well as stabbed during the attack.

A cat's body, found hidden under a sink in the flat, could also provide clues into the motive behind the murders, detectives have said.

Detectives said they planned to make more use of the internet in an effort to find out more about the two dead graduates.

Det Supt Steve Wade, who is leading the double murder hunt, said he was considering doing a live web-chat with Chinese students, with questions and answers being translated via an interpreter.

Vital information

He has also appealed to the Metropolitan Police for a Mandarin-speaking officer to be seconded to the case.

Computers and several mobile phones were taken from the bloody crime scene for analysis.

An appeal has also been made for Mr Zhen's best friend Fan Zhang, who is a post-graduate at Newcastle University studying economics, to help build up a picture of the victim's life.

Mr Wade stressed Mr Fan was not a suspect, but could hold vital information about the dead couple's last movements.

The couple met at Newcastle University where they both took masters degrees, graduating in September 2006.

Since then Miss Xi, known as Cici, had worked as a waitress at the Wagamama restaurant.

Police have not yet established Mr Zhen's occupation, despite looking at the couple's bank accounts.

They have ruled out any gang or drugs links, and said the murders remained motiveless.