Killing of Zijie Yan
2023 killing at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
On August 28, 2023, Zijie Yan, an associate professor at the University of North Carolina (UNC) in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States, was shot and killed on campus. 34-year-old Tailei Qi, one of his graduate students, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. The shooting sent the university into lockdown for three hours. On September 18, 2026, Qi was found "not guilty by reason of insanity" by a North Carolina state superior court judge.
Persons involved
Zijie Yan
Zijie Yan (Chinese: 严资杰; 1984 or 1985 – August 28, 2023) was a Chinese materials engineer from the city of Jingmen, Hubei Province.
Yan graduated from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, receiving bachelor's degrees with majors in materials and computer science in 2005, as well as a master's degree in physical electronics in 2007.
Yan travelled to the United States for doctoral studies. He received a Doctor of Philosophy in materials engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2011. His doctoral dissertation was titled Particle generation by pulsed excimer laser ablation in liquid: Hollow structures and laser-induced reactions (2011). His doctoral advisor was Douglas B. Chrisey.
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