The family of a Chinese restaurant owner who was shot to death says they were targeted in the attack.
Herald Sun reports the family of Hong Zheng, who was the victim of an armed robbery in North Carolina, claims the attack was targeted on them.
Zheng, 42, died on Sunday night on his driveway in Happy Valley North. He had been shot in an attempted armed robbery when returning home with his wife Shirley Chan from their restaurant, China Wok. Their children, Jade, 14, and Eastern, 16, witnessed the incident from their home.
Two cars parked up as Zheng and Chan approached their home. Nine or more people were seen getting out of the car. Three or four approached Chan as she got out first. Eastern handed his mother a gun and ammunition from inside the house
“They shot at my mom at least three times,” Jade said. “My mom tried to assemble the gun.”
Chan said she was mainly trying to protect her son and did not think about her husband who was still in the car.
“They ran away, so my mom ran back and forth trying to get my brother safe,” Jade said. “And she called my Dad, and he didn’t respond back.”
When Chan returned to Zheng, she found him unresponsive in his seat with a bullet hole in the window. He had been shot twice in the face and once in his neck, according to Jade.
The family has been less than impressed by the response of the Durham Police Department, who reportedly were unable to comment about the case.
“I feel like they tried more once someone has been killed, that’s when they start caring,” Jade added. “At the same time, they are not doing anything. Like, I haven’t heard back from them. I don’t think they are going to care anymore. It’s like they are not going to help my Dad. They are going to let [him] die and not get justice.”
Prior to the attack, the family had been victims of 4 attempted robberies at their home since 2015. “They put the gun to my head,” Chan said about one of the incidents. “Asked me to open the door.”
The family believes they are part of a small group of Asians in the community who are targeted because they are known restaurant owners.
“Because they know us so well. To the point [they] know where to park,” said Jade. “They know where to leave. They know what my parents do.”
Remembering her father, Jade said, “he went away without even telling me how to cook them. I don’t think anyone could compare to him.”
She recalled memories with him in the car where they would listen to songs, talk and laugh together. He had wanted her to go to college so she would have a better career than he had owning a restaurant.
