Monday, August 28th, 2023, terror struck the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a faculty member was fatally shot in the Caudill Labs building, a chemistry building located very close to the center of campus. UNC Police Chief Brian James claims initial reports of gunfire happened around 1 pm, and the campus immediately went into a lockdown that wasn’t lifted until 4:15 pm.
After a three hour search, authorities arrested the suspect. University officials initially hesitated to release the identity of the shooter and the staff member who was killed, claiming the name would be released once charges are officially pressed. No other injuries have been reported. As of yesterday, the names of both have been released.
Tailei Qi, was arrested on a first degree murder charge. He was a PhD student majoring in in applied physical sciences. The professor he shot was Zijie Yan, who was the head of the Department of Applied Sciences. The relationship between the two is that Zijie Yan served as Qi’s academic advisor.
It has been confirmed that a 9mm was the murder weapon, and Qi is currently being held without bond and will appeal to court on September 18th. While the relationship between the two has been discovered, the motive behind the shooting remains unknown. However, leading up to the shooting, Qi had complained through his social media about his “head of lab.’ He also used his social media to complain about bullies in America.
The 3 hour lockdown period which took place on Monday was described by students as a time of fear and desperation. Students and staff fled to dorm rooms, dark bathrooms, classrooms, and offices. Students described barricading their doors with furniture from around the room. Multiple students piled into the gym and locker room, doing whatever they could to avoid doors and windows. As this was going on, campus security was sending multiple alerts encouraging students and members to remain in one place.
Daneen Kahn, a freshman at UNC and a previous editor-in-chief of the Gators Eye, shares she was walking home from the dining hall when she heard the alarms. She sprinted back to her dorm, where she spent the next 3 and a half hours hiding under her bed with her curtains closed, lights off, and doors locked. “Thankfully, being in the dorm meant I was quickly able to text and eventually call my parents throughout. I was terrified for my friends scattered around campus, especially those by the labs.” Daneen also explains that eventually, she went home “not for my sake as much as to show my parents I was okay. Despite being in one of the safest places on campus, me heart didn’t stop racing until well after I left campus and arrived home”
In response to the unimaginably difficult conditions these students had to face only a week into their classes, UNC has canceled classes for Tuesday. UNC has also started hosting a hotline as of 8 a.m. tuesday for concerned parents, students, and community members to reach out to with any questions or concerns.
UNC Chancellor, Kevin Guskiewicz, offers his sympathy to the family of the faculty member in addition to the entire student body. In a statement, he claimed, “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. This shooting damages the trust and safety that we so often take for granted on our campus.”
While every shooting that happens on a school campus brings immense sadness, this one feels especially unnerving given it happened at a campus so close by. A mere 25 minute drive away from the swamp, the events that unfolded yesterday are bound to stir up unsavory emotions amongst Green Level’s student body. Most Green Level students know somebody, a friend or a sibling, that attends Chapel Hill. Around 70 members of last years’ graduating class are currently attending UNC. Some of us even want to attend there ourselves. “My peers and I are still shaky and processing. We’re all mourning the tragic event while also being incredibly grateful no further casualties were inflicted,” added Daneen Kahn when questioned about the impact the shooting has had on her and her peers.
On behalf of the Gators Eye staff, we wish a safe recovery for anybody involved or affected by the shooting, and we aim to emphasize the importance of more actions being taken to prevent gun violence on school campuses.
