Trials begin for man accused of stabbing Auburn couple in front of children

AUBURN, Ala. (WRBL) – Opening statements in the October 2020 alleged stabbing death of an Auburn couple in front of their two young children are scheduled to begin Monday morning. 21-year-old Zhuobin Wang is facing Capital Murder charges. Prosecutors do not seek the death penalty.

Auburn investigators said the husband died from approximately 20 stab wounds the night of the attack. The wife, who initially survived 60 stab wounds, passed away on February 13, 2021, at East Alabama Medical Center.

At the preliminary hearing for 21-year-old Zhuobin Wang, prosecutors played a 911 call Wang is suspected of making shortly after the attack. In Wang’s meeting, in October, 40-year-old Dr. He was heard describing Lijun Xuan and his wife, 41-year-old ZhengZheng Wu, taking an Uber to his home on Monroe Drive and stabbing them. During the interview, Wang explains that he used two knives that he usually used to cut food, and that after the stabbings, he put the knives in the trash can outside the house. Dr. Xuan died that night. His wife initially survived the attack and told police what happened.

“She observed Mr. Wang entering the house and stabbing her husband in the back near the piano. Levi Donnelly testified before the Auburn Police Detective Division.

Wu passed away on February 13, 2021. According to his obituary, Wu died in EAMC’s Intensive Care Unit while battling a collapsed trachea.

District Attorney Jessica Ventiere tells News 3 the Human Resources Department is caring for the couple’s two children and making sure their needs are met.

Testimony suggests Wang felt his reputation had been damaged by a dispute with the couple. Investigators said Wang lived with the couple while attending Auburn University. Wang told the 911 dispatcher that the couple had threatened her and her family. Wang said the controversy affected his grades and reputation. Wang’s defense lawyer argued that he had flipped. Wang was arrested at the scene.

Wang has been held behind bars at the Lee County Detention Facility without bail since his arrest four years ago.

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