Memorial to be held for missing Zhang Yingying

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“We believe that we will be reunited again,” Hou Xiaolin, the boyfriend of Zhang Yingying said to the Daily Illini, an independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois, ahead of June 9, the day marking the first year since she vanished in 2017.

The screenshot shows Zhang Yingying's message history with an apartment agent on June 9, 2017. /Photo via The Paper

Zhang, a graduate of the Peking University (PKU) Shenzhen Graduate School, arrived at the university in the US state of Illinois in April 2017 as a visiting scholar. She has been missing since June 9 when she disappeared on her way to sign a lease for a new apartment and has been presumed dead by the FBI. The suspect, Brendt Christensen, is in custody awaiting trial on April 2, 2019.

The suspect, Brendt Christensen, is a former University of Illinois physics graduate student and is in custody for a trial on April 2, 2019. He could face the death penalty if found guilty of kidnapping resulting in death. /VCG Photo

Some Chinese students, scholars and friends have planned to remember the day when she disappeared by holding a memorial service at the Illini Union on Saturday afternoon, according to the Daily Illini.

University officials will be invited to the service to speak, while a video containing remarks from Zhang’s family will be played at the memorial, reported the newspaper. For people who are unable to reach the service, a website will be set up to commemorate Zhang, according to Jiheng Jing, the vice president of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association (CSSA).

A screenshot of Zhang's boyfriend Hou Xiaolin's statement. /Screenshot from The Daily Illini

A day before the memorial, Hou Xiaolin made a statement and sent his remarks to the newspaper in Chinese via WeChat. In the text, he thanks the local police, consulate, university and student newspaper for their role in the search for Zhang and promises that he, together with the family, will never give up until they find her.

Hou also reminds all Chinese students who are studying overseas to take care of themselves and keep their families from worrying.

Born in Jianyang County, in southeast China’s Fujian Province, the 27-year-old Zhang excelled in school and scored high enough on her entrance exams to enroll in Guangzhou's Sun Yat-sen University, one of the top schools in the country. After graduation, Zhang went on to complete a master's degree in environmental engineering from Beijing's prestigious PKU Shenzhen Graduate School, followed by her move to Illinois. Zhang’s family raised around 20,000 yuan to help support her stay in the US and stretch her monthly stipend.

Surveillance footage shows Zhang Yingying was last seen at a bus stop on Goodwin Avenue and Clark Street on June 9, 2017. / VCG Photo

Zhang’s parents immediately traveled to the United States to look for their daughter upon hearing the news of her disappearance, and stayed there for five months before returning to China.

Zhang’s mother, Ye Lifeng, said she can't help but text her daughter every day.

“We just tell ourselves a lie that our daughter is still studying abroad and she can’t come home right now,” Ye added.

Timeline of missing Zhang Yingying /CGTN Photo