CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Court documents identified the faculty member gunned down UNC-Chapel Hill's campus Monday afternoon.
Zijie Yan was an associate professor at the university. He joined the faculty of Applied Physical Sciences in 2019.
Yan taught inside Caudill Laboratories, where investigators said suspect Tailei Qi shot and killed him.
According to UNC's website, Yan led a research group called the 'Yan Research Group' and taught his alleged killer. The site shows Qi joined the research group in January 2022. There's even a picture of Yan and Qi together on UNC's site.
Investigators still don't know why Qi shot his professor. The shooting sent the university into lockdown for several hours as students were told to shelter inside buildings. Police took Qi into custody an hour and a half after the initial reports.
Qi is now booked in the Orange County jail and faces a first-degree murder charge.
Flowers were found outside Caudill Labs Tuesday, in memory of Professor Yan.
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