UNC-Chapel Hill faculty murder: Who is suspect Tailei Qi?

Former FBI assistant director Chris Swecker discusses the latest developments in the lockdown at UNC on ‘Your World.’

A University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill graduate student, Tailei Qi, has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with a shooting on the school's campus Monday.

The shooting incident that left Zijie Yan, an associate professor in the Department of Applied Physical Sciences, dead prompted a lockdown around 1 p.m. in UNC-Chapel Hill school buildings as students began their first week of classes.

"This loss is devastating, and this shooting damages the trust and safety that we so often take for granted in our campus community," UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz said during a press conference Monday. "We will work to rebuild that sense of trust and safety."

Authorities did not say if the faculty member was specifically targeted and have not revealed a motive behind the killing. No other injuries were reported. Qi was a Ph.D. student and in the same research group as Yan, according to the school's website.

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UNC-Chapel Hill graduate student Tailei Qi has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with a shooting on the school's campus Monday. (Orange County Sheriff's Office)

Authorities said shots were fired around 1 p.m. at Caudill Laboratories, where Yan was apparently found deceased in a lab. Qi was taken into police custody around 2:31 p.m. 

In posts from Qi's apparent social media pages, he sought "new friends" and complained about hard work.

The person of interest identified as Tailei Qi was studying at UNC's Department of Applied Physical Sciences, according to the school's website. (UNC