Chinese student brutally murdered in flat 'may have been involved in internet football betting scam'

A Chinese graduate may have been tortured and murdered because of his links to an international internet betting scam on Premiership football matches, it emerged yesterday.

Zhen Xing Yang, 25, posted several adverts on Mandarin websites offering individuals $100 to watch games and pass on 'live' information to syndicates in the Far East.

He recruited scores of people to cover matches in the Premier League, the Championship and further afield in South American leagues - even sending willing 'spotters' to under-18 games.

Football matches are shown in China with up to a minute's delay, giving gambling syndicates with live information on the games a critical advantage.

In one advert, posted last October under his girlfriend's nickname CICI-UK, Mr Yang wrote: 'Work: watch football games and send live information to people.

'Requirement: Basic understanding of football rules, no professional background needed, advantage if you have a car.

'Location: Sheffield, London, Blackpool, Portsmouth, York, Hull and many other places.'

Recruits would be required to cover 'all major English city's team, Championship and Premier leagues'.

Two months later, in December last year, he appealed for people in South America to do the same. He also asked for spotters to work on matches in the U.S. Mexican League.

Because of the size of the networks across the world, syndicates generally employ international agents to recruit and manage those watching the live games.

It is thought Mr Yang was an agent for one of these syndicates and was in dispute with a number of 'spotters' over missing payments.

Xi Zhou, known as Cici, in CCTV footage which shows her getting on a bus to the home she shared with her boyfriend. They were murdered just hours later

Until now, police had been struggling to explain a motive for the killings.

The mutilated bodies of Mr Yang and his girlfriend, Xi Zhou, 25, were discovered in their ground floor flat in Newcastle last Saturday. Mr Yang was tortured before his death.

Police say the couple, who met while studying for masters degrees at Newcastle University, almost certainly knew their killers.

Miss Zhou, a waitress at a noodle bar, had also been asphyxiated - possibly in an attempt to stifle her screams.

Post-mortem examinations have since revealed that Mr Yang suffered significantly more injuries than his girlfriend.

A forensic officer photographs potential evidence after the students' bodies were found in their flat in Newcastle

One source, who did not want to be named, said: 'Things did not go smoothly and people were not paid on time. Complaints were raised and people felt they were cheated.'

He said higher-level agents may have conned those lower down the chain.

It was also claimed that the couple sold fake university degrees and international driving licences and ran a group purchase scheme to buy products cheaply, but then failed to hand over goods or return money.

Police said the internet link was part of their investigation into the murders.