UNC-Chapel Hill Professor Murdered in his Office Was Shot 7 Times

Zijie Yan was an associate professor at UNC’s Department of Applied Physical Sciences

A UNC-Chapel Hill professor who was murdered in his office in August was shot seven times.

Grad student Tailei Qi, 34, was charged in the killing of Zijie Yan, who was an associate professor at UNC’s Department of Applied Physical Sciences.

Qi was charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting, which happened inside one of the North Carolina campus’s science labs on Aug. 28, UNC Police said in a statement previously provided to PEOPLE.

According to an autopsy report, Yan suffered multiple gunshot wounds, including to the head, face, neck, left arm, chest, and abdomen, ABC News, Fox 8 and CBS 17 report. He also reportedly had graze wounds to the right upper arm, left hand and left forearm.

Related: UNC-Chapel Hill Faculty Member Dead After Shots Were Fired on Campus, Suspect in Custody

Police found Yan on the floor of his office, per ABC News. According to local media outlet WTVD, nine shell casings were also found on the floor.

The campus was put into lockdown following the shooting. PEOPLE previously reported that UNC Police had issued an alert stating that there was an "armed and dangerous person on or near campus."

Per The New York Times, Qi was a grad student in the same department and Yan was his faculty adviser, according to Qi’s UNC biographical page, which has since been deleted.

According to the investigation report, per ABC News, suspect Qi is still being interviewed by police. A motive for the shooting has not been announced.

The district attorney has said they won’t seek the death penalty against Qi, according to local media outlet WSOC-TV.

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Following Yan’s death, Chancellor Guskiewicz paid tribute to “our fellow Tar Heel” in a campus email shared on the university’s website.

“The wounds of this tragedy will not heal quickly,” the statement read in part. “[Yan] was a beloved colleague, mentor and friend to many on our campus. My leadership team and I have met with his colleagues and family to express our condolences on behalf of our campus. Please join me in thinking and praying for his family and loved ones during this difficult time.”

Per the email, Yan had been working at the university since 2019.

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Read the original article on People.