[2] Hiren Mohini, a taxi driver born in Mumbai,[3] had picked up a fare in central Auckland and gone to Mount Eden between 1:00 am and 2:00 am on 31 January 2010.
[citation needed] The suspect, Xiao Zhen, was a 23-year old Chinese national and kitchen worker at the SkyCity casino complex.
[7] After reciprocal visits between the New Zealand and Chinese police, Xiao Zhen was arrested in Shanghai in June 2010.
[2][8] The New Zealand authorities obtained formal written assurances that the death penalty would not be invoked.
[13] Associate Professor Bill Hodge of the University of Auckland called the trial "an insult to New Zealand jurisdiction".