Man guilty of murdering girlfriend Xixi Bi in Llandaff Published duration 17 February 2017

image copyright Wales News Service

A barman who said he had a black belt in karate has been found guilty of murder after beating his girlfriend at their Cardiff flat.

Xixi Bi, 24, was attacked by Jordan Matthews in August 2016 suffering a broken jaw, ribs and widespread bruising. She died in hospital after a cardiac arrest.

Matthews had admitted manslaughter but denied murder.

But a jury at Cardiff Crown Court found him guilty.

Following the verdict Miss Bi's family branded Matthews as a "selfish, mindless and gutless" man who "ripped the heart out of our family".

Matthews had told police he was a black belt in karate but did not think the incident was bad enough to cause the injuries Miss Bi suffered.

But the court heard he regularly beat her and called her "worthless".

Matthews said he had hit Miss Bi, believing she had cheated on him and cried when he was later told she had died.

image copyright South Wales Police image caption Jordan Matthews was 'paranoid' about Miss Bi

He told Cardiff Crown Court he had planned to marry Miss Bi.

Matthews accepted he was smoking "quite a lot" of cannabis at the time, and the court heard he felt "insecure" when his girlfriend went to visit her family in China.

He said he became "paranoid" about Miss Bi being unfaithful to him, and believed at the time she had received a message from someone called "Ben" on the Tinder dating app.

Both prosecution and the defence agreed that Miss Bi did not have the Tinder app, nor any contact called "Ben".

Analysis from pathologist Dr Ryk James said: "The assault upon her was severe and involved dozens of impacts.

"She had died as a result of the multiple blunt force injuries."

'Intelligent and energetic'

Born in China, Miss Bi was educated in the UK from the age of 15 and was a post-graduate student at Cardiff Metropolitan University at the time of her death.

In a statement following the verdict Miss Bi's family described her as an "intelligent and energetic person who had a very bright future and her whole life in front of her".

"All this was taken away from her, and us, by the selfish, mindless and gutless actions of Jordan Mathews, who brutally killed her for no other reason than jealousy," they said.

"He has wallowed in self-pity and refused to accept the truth."

Her family said they hoped the sentence would prevent Matthews from ever having the opportunity to hurt anyone else and give him time to reflect on his actions.

Cardiff Metropolitan University said they were offering support to students and staff affected by her death.

A spokesman said: "The University offers its deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Xixi at this very difficult time."