What Jennifer Did covers a chilling crime that left the mother of Jennifer Pan dead and her father alive but in a coma. Jennifer was found guilty of the attack, with the case exposing layers of deception and manipulation. After a complex trial, Jennifer Pan was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for at least a quarter of a century. She remains in The Grand Valley Institution for Women to this day.
Jennifer Pan’s Crimes and Her Whereabouts
Jennifer was jailed in The Grand Valley Institution for Women in Ontario, where she remains to this day, for orchestrating the murder of her mother and the attempted murder of her father.
A home invasion would occur in November 2010 in a suburban Ontario home that saw three men enter and brutally murder Bich-Ha Pan, and attempt to murder her husband Huei Hann Pan.
The 57-year-old man survived the attack, which at first glance seemed like a case of mistaken identity. However, in a dark twist, it came to light that the three attackers were not just random strangers, but were instead connected to the daughter of the couple, Jennifer Pan.
The truth started to reveal itself. Prosecutors alleged that the attack had been instigated by Jennifer, who was in a relationship with Daniel Wong, a relationship that Jennifer’s parents did not condone. Jennifer had also been lying to her parents about her school work, faking grades, and keeping up a pretense that she was achieving higher marks, receiving a scholarship, and attending University.
Jennifer Pan | Image via X
Instead, Jennifer was traveling into town and going to the library. She would announce her graduation but said only one guest would be allowed to attend, and that she asked a friend to go, so she did not have to choose one parent over another. When Jennifer told her parents she had a job at a local hospital for sick children, her father grew suspicious. The web of lies she had been spinning started to unravel.
Jennifer’s parents eventually intervened, and Jennifer was forced to tell the truth about what she had been doing for the last few years of her life. The parents were enraged by the revelations, and only allowed her to return to the family home under strict supervision. The situation led to the breakdown of her relationship with Daniel, but Jennifer did not give up and managed to rekindle things with him. It seems that around this time, the plan was devised to end her parents’ lives.
The attack was orchestrated by Jennifer and Daniel, who decided that if her relationship with Daniel were to continue, she would have to remove any obstacles in her way. She would pay ten thousand dollars to the three men who carried out the attack. As the investigation continued, both Jennifer and Daniel were eventually charged with murder and sentenced to life imprisonment, with no parole for the first twenty-five years.
Jennifer Pan Is Appealing Her Sentence But Does Not Have A New Trial Date
Jennifer Pan depicted in a court sketch | Image via John Mantha / CTV Toronto
Jennifer Pan appealed her sentence. Her legal team stated that they felt the jury was not given all available options when considering the case. This led the Court of Appeal for Ontario to request new trials for the first-degree murder convictions that were handed down.
On this basis, the retrial was granted in May 2023, as reported by CBC. At the time of writing, no date has been set for the retrial.
Netflix Covers the Case in “What Jennifer Did”
This heinous case is covered in the Netflix documentary What Jennifer Did. In our review, we said:
What Jennifer Did undoubtedly hits the right notes to spread excitement in the true crime community. With great editing, good commentary, insightful interviews, and plenty of police footage, Netflix has another documentary hit.
The documentary starts with recordings of the interviews conducted with Jennifer and the 911 call she made after the attack. Jennifer tells of the home invasion, where she heard “pops”.
As the show progresses, there are multiple clips of the interviews conducted with Jennifer and Daniel Wong. However, after the initial investigation, the police start to realize that there were many inconsistencies in the events, and the show covers in detail all the elements that led up to her being charged.
Detective Bill Courtice was the lead investigator in the case, and features heavily in the show, as he talks us through the events. Jennifer also had a brother, Felix, who was not present on the night of the attack but also keeps an incredibly private life since the incident.
