0:00

Old Old cases often become hard

0:02

to solve for a variety

0:04

of reasons, but this one

0:06

is especially puzzling. There There are

0:08

strange details on all sides

0:10

from the paramedics to the

0:12

investigation team, and even after

0:14

nearly 30 years, 30 no

0:16

justice has been served. been served.

0:18

No solid evidence, no CCTV,

0:21

and complete silence from the

0:23

victim. the victim's school. messy,

0:25

right? right? Well, it it

0:27

is. Welcome to the infamous

0:29

case of Zhu poisoning, which which

0:31

took place in Beijing, China. On

0:57

December 22nd, last year, China

0:59

was hit with heartbreaking

1:01

news. Juling, the the victim

1:03

of a poisoning incident

1:05

in in University 29

1:07

years ago, had passed

1:09

away. away. For many, this case might

1:12

be unfamiliar, but for people

1:14

in China, in it was a

1:16

gut was a gut punch, the pain of

1:18

unresolved injustice. injustice. Julian

1:20

had suffered from symptoms,

1:22

resembling a brain tumor, developed

1:24

a high fever of

1:26

39 39 degrees and eventually

1:28

fell into a coma

1:30

in March 1995. 1995. She remained remained

1:33

unconscious for approximately five months before

1:35

waking up in August of

1:37

the same year. year. However,

1:39

the delay diagnosis

1:41

of poisoning caused irreversible

1:44

damage, her leaving her

1:46

with severe neurological impairments.

1:48

suffered She suffered from significant

1:50

intellectual, visual and motor function

1:52

losses, and she she required full

1:54

-time care for the rest

1:56

of her life. Julian lived with

1:58

these with these debilitated, effects her

2:01

death in in 2023 at the

2:03

age of of Her family laid

2:05

her family laid her to

2:07

rest in Beijing, surrounded

2:09

by loved ones and supporters fighting.

2:11

for answers. Jueling's case

2:13

has haunted the nation for more

2:15

than two decades, two yet the investigation

2:17

made little to no progress. to no

2:20

Back in 2013, when when a

2:22

poisoning case at Fudan University was

2:24

solved, people hoped it would

2:26

lead to a breakthrough. to a breakthrough in

2:28

case, but their hopes were

2:30

dashed. The Beijing police

2:32

that the investigation the move

2:34

forward. There simply wasn't

2:36

enough direct evidence. With

2:38

no surveillance equipment in place

2:40

back then, crucial traces were

2:42

lost, making it nearly impossible were

2:44

lost, pinpoint the suspect. impossible to Born

2:47

into a Wella family on

2:49

April well-off 1973, 24th, 1973, Zhu Ling

2:51

stood out early on with

2:53

her sharp intellect. She was

2:55

brilliant, talented, and and

2:57

ambitious, eventually making her way

2:59

to Qinghua University, one

3:02

of China's most prestigious institutions. Her

3:05

Her classmates described her as

3:07

not only intelligent, but

3:09

also attractive and musically gifted

3:11

With passion for playing the

3:13

the Gu Chin, a a traditional

3:15

Chinese instrument. instrument. It was

3:17

on on 24, 1994, first

3:20

noticed first noticed something

3:22

wrong. sudden, She had sudden,

3:24

sharp, abdominal pain and lost

3:26

her appetite. through, Still, she

3:28

pushed through, continuing to practice for

3:30

an Foran upcoming concert in

3:32

early December. Despite the Despite the discomfort,

3:35

she didn't want to let her teachers

3:37

and supporters down. down. No one thought

3:39

it was anything serious. Everyone just

3:41

told her to rest. to Looking back,

3:43

it's strange that she didn't visit a

3:45

doctor right away. a You know how some

3:47

people just tend to shrug off health

3:49

issues, tend thinking off go away on its

3:51

own. go away on its when the pain

3:53

drags on for days. on figure

3:55

it's nothing serious and carry on

3:58

with life with life. Despite After

4:00

worsening symptoms, Juling showed

4:02

incredible resilience. Even as her

4:04

health deteriorated, she managed to

4:06

attend her doctor. to attend her concert at

4:08

the Beijing Concert Hall on December

4:11

11th, playing the Goochin for

4:13

the Chingua Chinese Orchestra. determination

4:15

was remarkable, especially

4:18

considering that her vision had started

4:20

to blur, forcing her to

4:22

wear glasses glasses the the performance. Witnesses

4:24

recall that she was not

4:26

only struggling only vision, but also

4:29

dealing with but also pain

4:31

in her eyes pain

4:33

entire time. entire time. Despite all

4:35

of this, Jolene pushed through

4:37

and delivered a flawless performance. After

4:39

the concert, she went home

4:41

to rest, but when she looked

4:44

in the mirror, in her heart sank,

4:46

heart her hair, and and began to

4:48

thin dramatically, revealing patches of

4:50

bald spots. spots. Realizing something was

4:52

seriously wrong, she sought medical

4:54

help. On help. On December she

4:56

was admitted to beige to

4:59

Beijing her hair nearly

5:01

all gone. all gone. Initially, even

5:03

the doctors were confused, but

5:05

Zhu Ling's but seemed to

5:07

improve slightly. seemed by January slightly, and

5:09

1995, 23rd, she was well

5:12

enough to be discharged discharged to

5:14

her classes. her classes. It It

5:16

was a hopeful moment. tragically,

5:18

it wouldn't last. last. By

5:20

March Julianne's health took a

5:22

drastic turn for the worse. She

5:24

She was struck with unbearable

5:27

pain in her legs and

5:29

dizziness. to Professor to

5:31

Professor Yang, the pain was so the

5:33

pain was so intense that couldn't

5:35

to touch anything. anything. The

5:37

agony spread from her legs

5:39

to her lower back, back,

5:41

and her parents, growing increasingly

5:43

desperate, took her to the to

5:46

the clinic at at Union Medical

5:48

College Hospital College March on for

5:50

more tests. tests. Their medical

5:52

professionals made a

5:54

observation. Juling were

5:56

frighteningly similar to those

5:58

of thallium poisoning. this point,

6:01

her condition had worsened dramatically.

6:03

She was losing her rapidly.

6:05

Her limbs, her to the

6:07

touch, and her fingertips were

6:10

turning red. Most alarmingly, she

6:12

had developed meas lines, white

6:14

discolorations across her fingernails, a

6:16

hallmark sign of phallium exposure.

6:19

She was sent to Professor

6:21

Zhang Shoulin who confirmed the

6:23

suspicion of thallium or arsenic

6:26

poisoning, though the hospital lacked

6:28

the necessary test to prove

6:30

it at the time. Now,

6:32

what exactly is thallium? It's

6:35

a highly poisonous metallic element

6:37

that exists naturally in the

6:39

environment, but is extremely dangerous.

6:41

Tasteless and odorless, it has

6:44

been used in the past

6:46

as a poison because it's

6:48

difficult to detect. Thallium can

6:51

enter the body through inhalation,

6:53

skin absorption or ingestion, and

6:55

once inside, it wreaks havoc.

6:57

Early symptoms include stomach pain,

7:00

vomiting, and diarrhea, but the

7:02

neurological symptoms are even more

7:04

terrifying. Tremors, headaches, insomnia, and

7:06

seizures. If exposure continues, it

7:09

can lead to coma and

7:11

ultimately death. Sure enough, by

7:13

March 20th, Julian's health took

7:15

a devastating turn as she

7:18

slipped into a coma. During

7:20

this period, doctors threw everything

7:22

they could at her condition,

7:25

including an intense treatment regimen

7:27

aimed at helping her recover.

7:29

One key therapy was plasma

7:31

exchange, which involved seven sessions.

7:34

Unfortunately this treatment came with

7:36

its own complications. Julian contracted

7:38

hepatitis C adding yet another

7:40

blow to her fragile health.

7:43

As if that weren't enough

7:45

she also developed pneumothorax a

7:47

condition where air leaks into

7:49

the space between the chest

7:52

wall and the lung collapsing

7:54

her left lung. This made

7:56

her condition even more critical

7:59

and she had to rely

8:01

on a ventilator just to

8:03

breathe. Her loved ones grew

8:05

increasingly desperate. Local doctors were

8:08

doing their best, but it

8:10

wasn't enough. On April 10th,

8:12

1995, Julian's friends turned to

8:14

the only avenue they hadn't

8:17

tried, the internet. They posted

8:19

an urgent SOS message on

8:21

various use net groups outlining

8:23

Julian symptoms and pleading for

8:26

help with the diagnosis. Back

8:28

then, the internet was a

8:30

relatively new frontier in China,

8:33

and only a handful of

8:35

research institutions were even connected.

8:37

Despite this, thousands of responses

8:39

poured in, and about one-third

8:42

of them suggested fallium poisoning.

8:44

Experts around the world weighed

8:46

in, supporting this theory, but

8:48

the doctors at Peking Union

8:51

Medical College Hospital remained skeptical.

8:53

They insisted they had already

8:55

tested for heavy metal poisoning,

8:57

but in reality, they had

9:00

only tested for our snack.

9:02

Frustrated but undeterred, Juling's parents

9:04

took matters into their own

9:07

hands. They learned about Professor

9:09

Chen Jin Yang from the

9:11

Beijing Institute of Labor Protection,

9:13

an expert in thallion poisoning,

9:16

and with the help of

9:18

a doctor from PUMCH, they

9:20

secretly sent Juling samples to

9:22

Professor Chen for testing. On

9:25

April 28th, 1995, the results

9:27

were clear. Julian's urine, blood,

9:29

surreose spinal fluid, nails, and

9:31

hair all showed sky-high levels

9:34

of thallium, hundreds to thousands

9:36

of times higher than normal.

9:38

It was undeniable. Julian had

9:41

been poisoned. and it was

9:43

speculated that Julian had been

9:45

continuously exposed to thallium over

9:47

a prolonged period. Analysis of

9:50

her symptoms and medical tests

9:52

indicated that the poisoning did

9:54

not occur from a single

9:56

large dose, but rather from

9:59

repeated smaller doses administered over

10:01

The hair analysis, conducted years

10:03

later, revealed that Julian had

10:05

been exposed to thallium sporadically

10:08

at first, and then, more

10:10

frequently, Anne in higher doses,

10:12

as her symptoms worsened. This

10:15

pattern of poisoning over time

10:17

suggests that the perpetrator had

10:19

continuous access to her and

10:21

the opportunity to administer the

10:24

poison repeatedly. With this shocking

10:26

confirmation, her parents immediately turned

10:28

to Professor Shue Fang-U, the

10:30

deputy head of the chemistry

10:33

department at Chingua University for

10:35

help. They urgently informed him

10:37

of Juling's condition and Shue

10:39

took swift action, reporting the

10:42

case to university authorities. However,

10:44

the handling of the case

10:46

saw the university's end was

10:49

notably poor. When he contacted

10:51

the deputy director of the

10:53

Chingua University Police Station to

10:55

formally report the situation, something

10:58

inexplicable happened. The deputy director

11:00

acknowledged the case but failed

11:02

to escalate it to the

11:04

police department for a full

11:07

investigation. Also, when Julian's friends

11:09

tried to crowdsource medical help

11:11

through the internet, Chingua's faculty

11:13

and classmates reportedly displayed apathy,

11:16

failing to assist in efforts

11:18

to translate critical communications from

11:20

foreign experts about her condition.

11:23

What happened next only deep

11:26

in the mystery? Between April

11:28

28th and May 7th, someone

11:30

broke into Julie's dorm room

11:33

and stole several of her

11:35

personal belongings. But the items

11:37

taken were bizarrely ordinary, things

11:40

like her contact lens case,

11:42

a tube of lipstick, shampoo,

11:44

shower gel, and a simple

11:47

water cup. Why would a

11:49

thief target such random, seemingly

11:51

unnecessary items? Even more puzzling,

11:54

a similar theft occurred when

11:56

Julian's other belongings were moved

11:58

to the chemistry department. fact

12:00

that these thefts happened to

12:03

Julian's things not once, but

12:05

twice, left everyone wondering if

12:07

there was more to the

12:10

story. After a comprehensive police

12:12

investigation, suspicion in Julian's poisoning

12:14

case fell on her roommate,

12:17

Sun Wei. Sun had access

12:19

to Thallium due to a

12:21

role in the chemistry lab

12:24

and had multiple opportunities to

12:26

administer the poison within their

12:28

shared dorm. They were both

12:31

part of the university's folk

12:33

music team, and some sources

12:35

describe their relationship as initially

12:37

close due to their shared

12:40

interests. However, underlying tensions between

12:42

them may have existed, as

12:44

hinted by the rumors surrounding

12:47

Sunway's alleged jealousy toward Julian.

12:49

Jew was often described as

12:51

intelligent, talented, and attractive qualities

12:54

that may have fueled rivalry

12:56

or resentment. There is no

12:58

definitive public evidence that their

13:01

relationship was openly hostile, but

13:03

some speculation suggests that jealousy

13:05

could have played a role

13:08

in the poisoning. The fact

13:10

that Sunway had access to

13:12

Thallium combined with her proximity

13:14

to Julling and their shared

13:17

space only intensified suspicions. Early

13:20

rumors suggested that the motive

13:22

might have been related to

13:24

a student election in which

13:27

Sun allegedly lost to Juling,

13:29

but when interrogated, Sunway vehemently

13:31

denied any involvement. She claimed

13:33

she bore no ill will

13:35

towards Ju and had nothing

13:38

to do with her poisoning.

13:40

Sunway was questioned for eight

13:42

hours by authorities, after which

13:44

her family was called to

13:47

take her home. Despite the

13:49

interrogation, no solid evidence was

13:51

found linking her to the

13:53

crime. This would be the

13:56

only time Sun was questioned

13:58

by the police. In 2005,

14:00

after more than a decade

14:02

of silence, Sunway finally her

14:04

quiet, publicly proclaiming her innocence.

14:07

Her father backed this claim

14:09

in a 2006 interview with

14:11

Xinjiang Jomo, but not everyone

14:13

was convinced. Many people remained

14:16

skeptical, and online discussions continued

14:18

to swirl with suspicions. The

14:20

public pointed to her family's

14:22

powerful connections as the real

14:25

reason she was never charged.

14:27

It wasn't just rumors. Sun's

14:29

family allegedly had ties to

14:31

high-ragging political figures, including a

14:33

cousin who was once the

14:36

deputy mayor of Beijing, and

14:38

a grandfather close to then-prison

14:40

Jean-Germin. These connections fueled theories

14:42

that Sun's family may have

14:45

influenced the investigation, allowing her

14:47

to avoid charges despite being

14:49

the primary suspect. In China,

14:51

Guanchi, which means personal connections,

14:54

plays a significant role in

14:56

influencing decisions, and many believe

14:58

this could explain why Sun

15:00

Wei was released after only

15:02

eight hours of questioning and

15:05

why the case was later

15:07

dropped due to lack of

15:09

evidence. Adding to the suspicions

15:11

surrounding Sunway, there was a

15:14

claim from someone with inside

15:16

knowledge that Juling's cup was

15:18

found in a box under

15:20

Sunway's bed. This detail was

15:23

revealed by Bay Jichang, a

15:25

high school classmate of Juling,

15:27

and someone would closely follow

15:29

the case. The cup's presence

15:31

in Sunway's possession fueled the

15:34

theory that Sun had both

15:36

the motive and opportunity to

15:38

poison Juling Jooling. But this

15:40

specific piece of evidence has

15:43

never been publicly addressed in

15:45

detail by the authorities. The

15:47

case soon hit a dead

15:49

end. There were no concrete

15:52

leads, no one to charge,

15:54

and worst of all, Julie

15:56

didn't receive the medical care

15:58

she desperately needed. she

16:01

had been poisoned with thallium,

16:03

Beijing Union Medical College Hospital

16:05

hesitated in administering the proper

16:08

treatment. Instead of immediately giving

16:10

her Prussian blue, the antidote

16:12

for thallium poisoning, they offered

16:15

a dimer capital, a less

16:17

effective remedy, until international experts

16:19

intervened. At that time, there

16:21

was no medical-grade Prussian blue

16:24

available in Beijing, and the

16:26

doctors were unsure whether they

16:28

could safely use industrial-grade Prussian

16:31

blue from local sources. This

16:33

delay likely worsened Juling's condition.

16:35

Meanwhile, her medical bills skyrocketed.

16:38

The university refused to cover

16:40

expenses unless she remained enrolled,

16:42

which became impossible as her

16:45

health deteriorated. This behavior fueled

16:47

public distrust, with many believing

16:49

that the university played a

16:52

role in obstructing justice. Despite

16:54

this, a community of bloggers

16:56

and supporters continued to rally

16:58

behind Julian, driven by their

17:01

suspicions about Sun Way. But

17:03

Sun had changed her name

17:05

and moved abroad. In May

17:08

2013, a petition appeared on

17:10

the White House website, calling

17:12

for an investigation into Sun,

17:15

who was believed to be

17:17

living in the US at

17:19

the time. However, by

17:22

July 2015, the White House

17:24

declined to act, stating that

17:26

while Julian's poisoning was tragic,

17:29

they couldn't intervene in foreign

17:31

legal matters. In 2023 to

17:33

2024, a petition surfaced in

17:35

the Australian Parliament, alleging that

17:38

Sunway, now known as Jasmine

17:40

Sun, was residing in Australia.

17:42

However, this too went nowhere,

17:45

as there were no legal

17:47

grounds for action, unless fraudulent

17:49

documentation was involved in a

17:51

residency. And so the case

17:54

became a cold case for

17:56

over two decades. Many still

17:58

believe that Sunway responsible for

18:01

the poisoning, framing her as

18:03

the sole perpetrator despite the

18:05

lack of concrete evidence. Yet,

18:08

without proof, the police let

18:10

her go, leaving Julian's story

18:12

as a haunting mystery, with

18:14

justice still painfully out of

18:17

reach. The Julian case leaves

18:19

us with a haunting question.

18:21

Why was the university so

18:24

passive? It seems that

18:26

the misandling of the case

18:28

stems from several factors. Chinghua

18:30

University, being one of China's

18:32

most prestigious institutions, may have

18:34

been more focused on protecting

18:37

its image, which could explain

18:39

their reluctance to cooperate fully

18:41

with authorities or pursue critical

18:43

leads aggressively. But it doesn't

18:45

end there, rumors of Sunway,

18:47

the prime suspect having influential

18:50

family connections, also raise eyebrows.

18:52

Could those connections have put

18:54

pressure on law enforcement back

18:56

off? Sunway was able to

18:58

change your identity and leave

19:00

the country without ever facing

19:02

charges, feeling the idea that

19:05

there was interference. It's no

19:07

wonder this case has stayed

19:09

unsolved for so long. There

19:11

is just too much mystery

19:13

surrounding it. But for now,

19:15

all we can do is

19:17

speculate. Now that Julian has

19:20

passed away, the spotlight has

19:22

once again turned back to

19:24

the case, reigniting the questions

19:26

and frustrations that have lingered

19:28

for nearly three decades. This

19:30

undying mystery continues to haunt

19:33

those who followed it closely.

19:35

Was this case mishandled due

19:37

to a lack of effort

19:39

by the authorities, or are

19:41

we looking at one of

19:43

the most perfect crimes ever

19:45

committed in China? Juling suffering

19:48

was unimaginable. She endured years

19:50

of pain, illness, and a

19:52

life forever changed by poison.

19:54

She didn't deserve any of

19:56

it, and more than anything,

19:58

she deserved just. Will

20:01

justice ever truly be served?

20:03

Or will this case remain

20:05

unsolved, locked away in history, as

20:08

a tragic reminder of what we

20:10

lost? we lost? That is all for

20:12

today. Thank Thank you for watching.