On August 28, 2023, at about 1:02 p.m., gunfire was reported inside Caudill Laboratories at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Responding officers found 38-year-old Associate Professor Zijie Yan of the Department of Applied Physical Sciences dead from multiple gunshot wounds. The campus was placed on lockdown while authorities searched for the shooter.

About an hour and a half later, 34-year-old graduate student Tailei Qi, who had been supervised by Yan, was arrested off campus and charged with first-degree murder and possession of a firearm on educational property. Investigators found Qi had recently obtained the weapon despite being on a nonimmigrant visa that prohibited such a purchase; he had also been to a local firing range in the days before the shooting. Qi underwent a court-ordered mental health evaluation and in November 2023 was found unfit to stand trial due to untreated schizophrenia and committed for treatment. As of December 2024, Qi remains under psychiatric care and legal proceedings are on hold. The university has expanded safety protocols and support services and has been holding memorials honoring Professor Yan’s work and mentorship.

If anyone has information about Yan’s last movements in Caudill Laboratories or about events leading up to August 28, please share what is known.