Graduate student charged with 1st degree murder of UNC faculty member: Chapel Hill shooting live updates

The UNC-Chapel Hill campus was noticeably quiet on Tuesday afternoon.

But in front of Rams Head Recreation Center, a group of mothers held signs reading "Hugs and Pups" and called out to students walking by. Soon, a small circle formed around a small dog named Rosie.

One of the moms, Cathy Emrick, is the founder of HAPPEE or the Hugs And Pups Posse - Encouraging and Empowering! She also works at UNC-Chapel Hill and is the parent of a student.

“We’re teaching them how to hide. If they can’t hide, run. And if they can’t run, how to fight a person with a gun,” Emrick said. “That’s just sick. I have big feelings about this and I funnel them into HAPPEE, because that’s what we can do. I can’t fix society, but I can hug some necks and I can bring my dog.”

Read more about HAPPEE and how students are coping.

Brianna Atkinson

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WUNC

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Hannah Schoenbaum

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AP

The UNC-Chapel Hill graduate student accused of killing his faculty advisor on campus Monday made his first appearance in court today.

The UNC Police Department charged Tailei Qi with first-degree murder of faculty member Zijie Yan and an additional felony for bringing a gun on educational property.

Chapel Hill city police arrested Qi in a residential neighborhood near the campus within two hours of the attack and didn't need to use force to take him into custody, UNC Police Chief Brian Jones said at a news conference. He said investigators were still trying to determine a motive and were still searching for the gun used to kill Yan.

Qi was previously held at the Orange County jail without bond. During today's hearing, the District Attorney requested no change.

Read more about this story here.

The advocacy group North Carolina Asian Americans Together is asking the general public to reject the anti-Asian discourse that has increased on social media platforms since the fatal shooting of a UNC-Chapel Hill faculty member.

The suspect in the shooting at UNC-Chapel Hill Monday is Tailei Qi, who has been charged with first degree murder. Qi is a graduate student at the university's department of applied sciences, and previously studied at Louisiana State University and Wuhan University, according to his LinkedIn profile.

In a statement released this morning, NCAAT said, "Due to the identity of the alleged shooter, there has been a rise in anti-Asian rhetoric on social media platforms and other online forums. We urge everyone to reject this hatred and instead turn your attention to supporting the loved ones of ’s victim and the UNC-Chapel Hill community."

"Yesterday’s victim was part of the Asian community here in the Triangle. Our team will continue to monitor the situation and will provide support in any way we can," said NCAAT's statement.

Earlier today, the victim was identified as Zijie Yan, an associate professor in the Department of Applied Physical Sciences and Qi's faculty advisor. He joined the Chapel Hill faculty in 2019 and previously worked as an assistant professor at Clarkson University. Yan was born in Jingmen, Hubei Province in central China.

The UNC Asian Americans Center will be hosting a webinar at 5:15p.m. today to give space for people to reflect and process Monday's events.

UNC-Chapel Hill

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aps.unc.edu

The man who was fatally shot on Monday on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill has been identified by the Associated Press as Zijie Yan, an associate professor in the Department of Applied Physical Sciences.

Campus police received a 911 call reporting shots fired at Caudill Labs just after 1 p.m. Monday, police said. An emergency alert was issued and sirens sounded two minutes later, starting a lockdown that led frightened students and faculty to barricade themselves inside dorm rooms, bathrooms, classrooms and other school facilities.

Officers arriving at the lab building found a faculty member who had been fatally shot, police said. Based on witness information, police took the suspect into custody just after 2:30 p.m.

The suspect is Tailei Qi, 34, and he was booked into custody by the Orange County Sheriff's Department just after midnight Tuesday. He is charged with first degree murder and an additional Class I felony for bringing a gun onto educational property. He is due in court Tuesday afternoon.

Yan led the Yan Research Group, which Qi joined last year, according to the group’s UNC webpage. Yan earned his PhD in materials engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York and previously worked as an assistant professor at Clarkson University. He joined the Chapel Hill faculty in 2019.

Qi is a graduate student in the department of applied physical sciences who studies nanopartical synthesis and light-matter interaction. He moved to the U.S. from China after earning a bachelor’s degree in physics at Wuhan University, according to the UNC webpage for the Yan Research Group.

The suspect in the apparent shooting at UNC-Chapel Hill on Monday that killed a faculty member was booked into custody by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office just after midnight on Tuesday, according to online public records.

Tailei Qi, 34, had his mugshot taken and is charged with first degree murder. He is also charged with an additional Class I felony for bringing a gun onto an educational property.

Qi is expected to have his first court appearance in Hillsborough on Tuesday around 2 p.m.

According to Qi’s LinkedIn account, he was a research assistant and graduate student in the department of applied sciences at UNC-Chapel Hill since January 2022. He previously studied at Louisiana State University and Wuhan University.

Police are continuing their investigation into Monday’s shooting. Classes at UNC-Chapel Hill are canceled for the Tuesday, and UNC’s Caudill Laboratory will be closed until further notice.

Police are searching for both the weapon and the motive in a shooting at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill that left one faculty member dead and prompted an hours-long lockdown on Monday afternoon.

No other injuries were reported.

Officials say the assailant in the shooting at a science building in the heart of the flagship university’s campus was taken into custody about an hour and a half after the gunfire was first reported. Neither the suspect nor the victim was immediately identified, and formal charges were pending.

Police also say they're still searching for the gun.

Read more here.

Matt Ramey

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For WUNC

Freelance photographer Matt Ramey was on assignment for WUNC after a gunman shot and killed a faculty member in a science building at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill on Monday, August 28, 2023.

He captured scenes from around campus after officials gave the all clear.

See the images here.

Emergency sirens sounded about two minutes after a 911 caller reported gunfire around 1 p.m. at the laboratory in the heart of the flagship campus, UNC Police Chief Brian James said at a press conference Monday evening.

Across the Chapel Hill campus, students responded to the lockdown and shooting.

First-year student Cogan McMichaels spent his sixth day at UNC-Chapel Hill locked in his dorm room. For several hours on Monday afternoon, he and his roommate sat in the dark, their eyes glued on Instagram, X (formerly known as Twitter), and Snapchat feeds.

The two weren’t just hanging out or scrolling to see if their friends were off doing something fun. They were sheltering in place from an active shooter on campus, scrolling to see if any sites could provide information to what the scene looked like outside Cobb Residence Hall.

Read more about student reaction here.

Police are confident that the suspect arrested Monday afternoon is responsible for the shooting death of a faculty member at the Caudill Laboratories on UNC-Chapel Hill's campus.

"We did a comprehensive search of campus, as well as the surrounding areas," UNC Police Chief Brian James said at a press briefing Monday evening. "So at this point, I am not prepared to say how he was apprehended, but we are sure that it’s him, and we were able to verify that."

UNC Police are not identifying the suspect until he is formally charged.

Matt Ramey

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For WUNC

Police are still on the lookout for a firearm involved in the shooting, but aren't prepared to identify the type of weapon they are looking for.

Shortly after the lockdown began, someone who police said fit the description of the suspect and was in the general area of the Caudill Laboratories was detained. When it was determined that person was not the suspect, they were released shortly after, James said.

“We want to learn from this incident, and we will certainly work to do our best to ensure that this never happens again on the UNC campus," he said.

First-year student Cogan McMichaels was in Cobb, an on-campus dorm, when he heard about a possible active shooter being on campus. He and his roommate sat in pitch darkness, as they scrolled through their phones to get any information on the situation.

Liz Schlemmer

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WUNC

“We had the lights off, the blinds were down, the door was locked. The hall lights were off, so it was very eerie outside,” he said. “You’re always in that position where you’re like 'it couldn’t be me' and then when it is, you’re kind of shocked. It’s horrifying.”

A faculty member was killed during Monday's shooting on UNC-Chapel Hill's campus.

Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz alerted the UNC community in an email around 5:40 p.m. University officials are waiting for the next of kin to be notified about the shooting before revealing more information.

"I am devastated and saddened by today’s shooting in one of our campus buildings, a place where we conduct our important work of teaching, mentoring, and research every day," Guskiewicz said in the email. "This shooting damages the trust and safety that we so often take for granted on our campus. We will work to rebuild that trust and safety."

Police were notified of shots fired in the Caudill Laboratories on campus at 1:02 p.m. The suspect was taken into custody around 2:30 p.m.

Classes are cancelled for the rest of Monday, as well as all of Tuesday.

UNC-Chapel Hill campus police issued a notice of "all clear," around 4:14 p.m. Monday after the campus was under lockdown for more than three hours.

"All clear. All clear," the alert read. "Resume normal activities."

The campus went into lockdown around 1:04 p.m. after reports of an "armed, dangerous person on or near campus."

Elected officials from both sides of the aisle posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Monday afternoon to offer their support and prayers for the UNC-Chapel Hill community after an apparent shooting on campus.

Hannah Schoenbaum

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AP

An apparent shooting at the University of North Carolina flagship campus on Monday led to a school-wide alert warning of an "armed, dangerous person on or near campus" and urging people to go inside and avoid windows.

Authorities didn't immediately provide details of the alleged shooting on the Chapel Hill campus, including whether anyone had been shot.

A student told TV station WTVD that she had barricaded her dormitory door with her furniture. Another student, speaking softly, described hiding in fear with others in a dark bathroom.

The report of the shooting and subsequent lockdown paralyzed campus and parts of the surrounding town of Chapel Hill a week after classes began at the state's flagship public university. The university has approximately 20,000 undergraduate students and 12,000 graduate students.

Noel T. Brewer, a professor of health behavior, said he was once held at gunpoint in his mother's jewelry store, but that Monday's apparent shooting and lockdown was "far more stressful."

Speaking from his locked office where he hid with other colleagues, Brewer, 57, said by phone that he was getting little information.

Brewer, a married father of two young kids, said he felt for anyone who might have been shot.

"But even in our own building, the students who are locked down and what they're thinking about — it's just a lot. It's a terrible situation," said Brewer.

It was also the first day of kindergarten for Brewer's 5-year-old son. His elementary school was also on lockdown.

"He doesn't know what's going on. And at some point, he's going to realize that he hasn't gotten on the bus when he's supposed to," he said.

Brewer, who also has a 2-year-old added: "My husband and I have been trading texts and trying to figure out what to do … Just wondering how our kids are feeling. It's a lot."

One of Brewer's colleagues is visiting from Africa and staying in the U.S. for the first time.

"She said her one concern was guns and possibly something happening at the university," Brewer said. "And this was her first faculty meeting, and her worst nightmare came true."

Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools began dismissing students at 3:40 p.m. Monday afternoon, more than an hour after the normal dismissal time due to an "armed and dangerous" person who was on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill.

"We have received the “all clear” from the proper authorities," a spokesperson for the school system wrote in an email.

All after-school activities are canceled.

For UNC-Chapel Hill, the Alert Carolina system advised all students, faculty and staff on campus to continue to shelter in place at 3:52 p.m.

All classes and events at UNC-Chapel Hill have been cancelled for the rest of the day.

The university sent out the update via its alert system around 3:15 p.m. Monday.

Those on campus should continue to shelter in place until the university says otherwise.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said Monday afternoon that he has "pledged all state resources needed to capture shooter and protect the UNC campus."

Cooper said he has spoken with Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood and Public Safety Secretary Eddie Buffaloe Jr. regarding the situation.

Cooper is a two-time UNC-Chapel Hill graduate, earning his undergraduate and law degree from the university.

As of 2:24 p.m. on Monday, the suspect — who UNC officials called "armed and dangerous" — is not in police custody.

Around 2:35 p.m., UNC police shared a photo of "a person of interest" regarding the situation.

The Town of Chapel Hill said that its community members should avoid campus. Carrboro Mayor Damon Seils says folks should, "avoid repeating unconfirmed reports."

Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools typically releases its students for the day at 2:25 p.m., but is keeping them in the building until an all-clear is given by police. CHCCS said in a message to parents: "As a safety precaution, schools have been directed not to release students to their families at this time. Buses will remain in place until we can safely release students."

Nearly an hour after Alert Carolina issued its first alert about an "armed and dangerous" person near UNC's campus on Monday afternoon, the shelter in place order remains in effect.

GoTriangle buses have paused transportation near Chapel Hill.

Media near campus have reported an increased police presence.

Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools entered "Secure Mode" on Monday afternoon after the report of an "armed and dangerous person" near the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill.

For CHCCS, "Secure Mode" means building doors will be closed and locked, and nobody will enter or leave a school building until an “all-clear” signal is given by the authorities.

CHCCS said in a message to parents that it was a "precaution," and that classroom instruction will continue normally.

WRAL Screenshot

Officials with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill said there was an “armed and dangerous person on or near campus” on Monday afternoon and advised people to shelter in place.

A push alert from UNC went out to students, faculty and staff around 1:04 p.m. The on-campus Alert Carolina sirens were also activated. At 1:21 p.m., the Alert Carolina system advised everyone to “continue to shelter in place.”

UNC and campus police did not immediately provide any other details. Police advised all students, faculty and staff to go inside immediately, close windows and doors, and stay until further notice.

St. Thomas More Catholic School went into a lockdown shortly after the alert was sent out by UNC-Chapel Hill. Chapel Hill transit buses also stopped running and are holding their positions.

WUNC's Elizabeth Baier, Josh Sullivan, and Will Michaels contributed to this report.