Sex assault student Hang Zhang 'faces deportation'

Hang Zhang sexually assaulted a female student at the University of Sheffield

A "highly intelligent" student with mental health problems who sexually assaulted a woman is likely to be deported, a judge has said.

Hang Zhang, 27, pulled down the shorts of a female student, a court heard.

The Chinese national, of Hawley Street, Sheffield, had previously been arrested for carrying a knife near Buckingham Palace in 2016 and was subsequently sectioned under the Mental Health Act.

Judge Jeremy Richardson QC ordered Zhang be detained at a secure hospital.

Zhang appeared at Sheffield Crown Court over the sexual assault he admitted committing on the Chinese student at the University of Sheffield in October.

Judge Richardson said the defendant had developed a "penchant" for following Chinese women students and he followed one out of a gym class and pulled down her shorts.

The judge said: "She was quite understandably acutely embarrassed and appalled."

'Disgraceful conduct'

Judge Richardson said both incidents were "bizarre" and he was sure that Zhang was suffering from a complex mental disorder - almost certainly bipolar affective disorder.

Referring to the sexual assault in Sheffield, the judge said: "It was, on any analysis, disgraceful conduct but it was equally quite bizarre."

He ordered Zhang to be detained at a medium secure hospital, saying that if he had not been mentally ill he would have been given an immediate prison sentence.

The judge said: "It is important, given your history, and in particular the episode at the palace, that the Secretary of State is made aware of your case.

"I have every suspicion that, in due course, you will be removed from the country and returned to the People's Republic of China."

The judge added: "What will become of you in China is not a matter for me."

He said he hoped the defendant would get the treatment he needed.