Attorneys for a man accused of kidnapping and killing University of Illinois scholar Yinying Zhang are asking a judge to dismiss a main charge against him, change the location of his trial, and throw out some evidence.

28-year-old Brendt Christensen’s attorneys filed 12 pretrial motions Monday. One of of them asking the court to exclude a secret recording made by Christensen’s then girlfriend on behalf of the FBI that ultimately led to his arrest.

His attorneys are also arguing that the kidnapping charge against him be dismissed because prosecutors lack evidence that Zhang was forced into his car. Defense attorneys also argue that the trial should be moved to Rock Island or Chicago because of the pretrial publicity in the Urbana area.