University of North Carolina faculty member fatally shot; PhD student held

A faculty member at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill was fatally shot Monday afternoon in a science building at the school, and a person of interest was in custody after the campus community sheltered in place for hours as police looked for the gunman.

The university and the campus police department didn't release the names of the victim or person of interest. But police posted a picture on Twitter of a man described as person of interest, without providing his name.

The man was later identified through other websites as Tailei Qi, a postgraduate student in the university's Applied Physical Sciences Department.

Qi arrived at UNC in January 2022, according to his LinkedIn account. Students on WeChat, who didn't give their names, said he was a former student at Louisiana State University and at Wuhan University in China and was born in Henan province.

According to two students who spoke to China Daily and asked to remain anonymous, the victim was Zijie Yan, an associate professor who they say served as Qi's adviser.

Qi wrote on Twitter on May 30 that, "For a PhD student, pay much attention to working time every day is really childish." He wrote that many people expect him to work, and he added "that's not human at all" .

The weapon used in the shooting hasn't been found, authorities said.

"It is too early to determine the motive for the shooting," UNC Police Chief Brian James said on Monday evening. "We really want to know the ‘why' in this case and what led to it," he added.

Gunshots were first reported at 1:02 pm in the school's Caudill Laboratories. An emergency alert message was sent to university members at 1:04 pm, alerting the campus to an "armed and dangerous person on or near campus".

All faculty, students and staff were advised to shelter in place — "going inside immediately, closing windows and doors, and waiting until further notice", according to a school email. An "all-clear" alert was issued for the campus at 4:15 pm.

"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," UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz told the university community. "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."

Students said they were scared after receiving the alert in class, using desk chairs to block classroom entrances until police advised them to leave.

The incident happened in the second week of the new semester. UNC has a student body population of about 32,000 and nearly 5,000 faculty and staff members.

All classes and events were canceled for the rest of Monday and for Tuesday, according to a school email.