Warrants reveal evidence linking UNC grad student to professor’s murder on campus
Three federal search warrants reveal evidence against a UNC-Chapel Hill graduate student accused of murdering a professor on campus in August.
Tailei Qi, 34, bought a 9 mm pistol online and visited a shooting range the day before the murder, the warrants state.
One witness heard an argument between Qi and Zijie Yan, a professor in UNC’s Department of Applied Physical Sciences, and then five gunshots, the warrants say.
After exiting a nearby office inside Caudill Laboratories, the witness saw Qi walking by with a gun in his hand, the warrants state.
Qi was charged with first-degree murder and misdemeanor possession of a firearm on educational property the day after the shooting.
During a court hearing in November, Qi was found to be mentally ill and unfit to participate in the court proceedings at that time. Two evaluations found Qi likely suffered from untreated schizophrenia, an Orange County judge said at the hearing.
The warrants, sought by an FBI agent, were granted to allow law enforcement officers to search Qi’s phone, apartment and his 2014 Nissan Versa.
Witnesses identify Qi quickly
After the shooting, multiple witnesses, including the person who said he saw Qi, identified the graduate student as the shooter.
Investigators determined that Qi fired 10 rounds during the assault, likely shooting at Yan until he ran out of ammunition, the warrants state.
Soon after, the Chapel Hill Police Department received a call about a man running through the woods about two miles from the lab. The man was wearing a gray shirt, which was consistent with previous descriptions of Qi.
When questioned, Qi said he was running toward his apartment at 109 Shadowood Drive, the warrants state. He told police that he was at the lab the morning of the shooting but decided to go home after he received an alert about a shooter on campus, the warrants state.
He denied owning a pistol but said he rented and shot one at a firing range with an instructor two weeks before.
Chapel Hill police arrested Qi without incident around 2:38 p.m. He didn’t have a gun with him, but police did take his Google cellphone.
Qi visits a firing range
The day after the shooting, someone from an unnamed Wake County firearms range reached out to police after seeing news reports about the UNC killing, which prompted law enforcement to lock down the campus, local schools and the surrounding area for three hours.
A range employee reported that Qi visited the range on Aug. 17 and Aug. 27, the day before the shooting.
At the range he rented a Glock 43X 9mm pistol. He purchased a box of 9 mm ammunition. He left the range but then quickly returned and bought another box of the same ammunition, the warrants state.
Police obtained multiple shell casings from 9mm ammunition from the site of the killing.
Qi was a member of Yan’s research team at UNC. In paperwork he filled out to use the range, Qi listed Yan as his emergency contact, Qi said.
Police search Qi’s apartment
After the shooting, police searched Qi’s apartment.
They found a notebook with login information for two different firearm website forums where people sell and discuss firearms, the warrants state.
Agents identified a person from the Charlotte area who had sold a Glock 43X a few days before the shooting. The person later identified Qi in a photograph as the person who purchased the firearm.
The contact also shared screen captures of the text message he exchanged with Qi, which matched Qi’s cell phone.
Qi was in the United States on a F-1 student visa, which prevented him from legally possessing a firearm and evidence, the warrants state.
Qi improperly accessed a female student’s email
Without explaining its significance to the murder investigation, the warrants describe that Qi had improperly accessed a female student’s UNC email account by tricking a campus help desk.
Qi set up a two-factor authentication in which notifications would be sent to Qi’s phone, the warrants state.
That allowed Qi to access and download emails from the student’s account.
Qi admitted to investigators that he accessed the student’s account.
During the court hearing in November, it was reported that Qi was found to be mentally ill and unfit to participate in the court proceedings at that time.
Virginia Bridges covers criminal justice in the Triangle and across North Carolina for The News & Observer. Her work is produced with financial support from the nonprofit The Just Trust. The N&O maintains full editorial control of its journalism.
