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« Previous « Previous Next » Next » View Gallery Police investigating the brutal murder of two Chinese graduates said their pet cat was probably drowned by their killers. Xi Zhou and her boyfriend Zhen Xing Yang, both 25, were found dead with severe head injuries in their flat in Newcastle's West End on Saturday.

Their black cat was discovered in a bowl of water with a towel and kitchen gloves on top of it under a ADVERTISEMENTsink in the bathroom.

A post-mortem examination of the pet revealed that the cat drowned recently, probably in the bowl.

Detective Superintendent Steve Wade, leading the investigation, said: "Given the recent nature of the cat's death and where it was found, it is reasonable to assume that those responsible for the two murders also killed the cat."

Police have looked into whether killing a pet had any cultural significance in Chinese culture and whether cats were thought to be lucky.

Northumbria Police revealed CCTV images of the last known movements of Ms Zhou as she made her way home a week ago from a city centre noodle bar where she was a waitress.

They have been unable to find out much about Mr Yang's background, and said they would make appeals in mandarin to UK-based Chinese students via internet chatrooms.

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