Kai Zhu pleads guilty to assault causing harm in Dublin

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Kai Zhu pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assault causing harm to his wife, Meihan Meng, at their home on Sandymount Avenue, Dublin, on 13 May. The proceedings were reported on 18 March 2021.

In a victim impact report, Meng, an off-duty garda, said she believed she would die as Zhu held her down on the kitchen floor and strangled her. She said she tapped her fingers on the floor to signal that she could not breathe.

The court heard that Zhu punched and slapped her repeatedly. After his arrest, he admitted assaulting her but claimed she had struck him first with a child's chair. He denied choking or punching her and said he had only slapped her.

Keith Spencer BL, defending, said Zhu was deeply regretful and apologised. Counsel said Zhu maintained that he had not started the physical altercation but admitted acting disproportionately.

Judge Karen O'Connor remanded Zhu on continuing bail for sentence the following Wednesday.

This report covers an earlier stage of the case. Later developments are not reported here.