SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (Court TV/Scripps News Phoenix) — An Arizona State University professor is in custody for the shooting death of his wife.
David Zhu, 47, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 46-year-old Susan Yijuan Yan.
David Zhu (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)
Scottsdale police said they were called to the couple’s home Saturday evening for an accidental shooting. Officers found Yan in a hallway outside the master bedroom, according to court documents. She was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
While being taken into custody, Zhu allegedly said, “I was trying to shoot the wall behind her.”
The couple’s 19-year-old daughter and 14-year-old son were home at the time of the shooting. They told investigators their parents had a history of domestic violence. On the day of their mother’s death, they heard two gunshots, and “neither child expressed any surprise that David had shot and killed their mother.”
Zhu is listed on Arizona State University’s website as a professor at the W.P. Carey School of Business. ASU confirmed to Scripps News Phoenix that as of Sunday, Zhu is still employed at the university.
Scripps News Phoenix, an E.W. Scripps Company, contributed to this report.
