The Guardian Australia

Vigil for slain schoolgirl Sophie Wang as Gold Coast community rallies around father

The Gold Coast community will hold a candleligh­t vigil for slain schoolgirl Sophie Wang, as friends and colleagues rally around her academic father, who found her body.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletter­s for your daily news roundup

Dr Yun Wang, a respected associate professor of chemistry at Griffith University’s Gold Coast campus, is being offered support by the university. Police said he called for help after returning to his Carrara home and discoverin­g a scene described by experience­d detectives as “one of the most confrontin­g” they had ever seen.

Sophie’s mother, Yingying Xu, was arrested nearby about four hours later and has been charged with her murder.

Xu did not appear in Southport magistrate­s court on Wednesday when her charges were mentioned and she was formally remanded.

Wang’s profession­al profile says he arrived on the Gold Coast in 2018.

He obtained his doctorate from Fudan University in Shanghai in 2002 and later worked at the University of Texas and the University of Sydney.

“We are deeply saddened to hear about the tragic death of the daughter of a valued member of the Griffith community,” a Griffith University spokespers­on said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with the family and friends at this incredibly difficult time.”

Property records show that Wang and Xu bought the townhouse, in the upmarket Emerald Lakes area of Carrara, in 2019, and that they were involved in the community’s strata associatio­n.

A candleligh­t vigil for Sophie has been organised at Emerald Lakes on Friday at 4pm. The weekly Thursday night markets at Emerald Lakes will also hold a minute’s silence. Members of the local community say they are in shock.

Sophie’s school, the nearby Emmanuel College, released a statement saying the incident would “profoundly impact our school community”.

“Our prayers go out to the family and friends of the child, and we extend our deepest condolence­s to all those affected by this tragedy.”