Chunli Zhao Admits To HMB Mass Shooting In NBC News Interview

HALF MOON BAY, CA — The suspect in Monday’s Half Moon Bay mass shooting that killed seven people and wounded one has confessed to the crimes in an exclusive jailhouse interview with NBC Bay Area, the television station reports on its website.

Chunli Zhao, 66, is facing seven counts of murder and one count of attempted murder in connection with the Half Moon Bay shooting, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said. Zhao is being held without bail.

If convicted, he faces life without parole, or the death penalty.

Zhao spoke with NBC Bay Area’s Janelle Wang on Thursday, a day after making his first court appearance. He did not issue a plea and his arraignment was continued to Feb. 16.

He expressed remorse in the 15-minute interview, which was conducted in Mandarin, Wang said.

Zhao said he understands the charges against him and that he “was not in his right mind” when he opened fire on co-workers at two Half Moon Bay locations, Wang said.

He said he experienced years of bullying and harsh working conditions that were never addressed.

He said he has a wife who lives in Half Moon Bay and a 40-year-old daughter who lives in China.

He told Wang he has lived in the United States for 11 years and has a Green Card. He said he purchased the weapon – a Ruger semi-automatic pistol, according to District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe – at a store in 2021.

The San Mateo County Coroner’s Office on Wednesday identified six of the seven Half Moon Bay fatalities as Yetao Bing, 43 (unknown residence), Qizhong Cheng, 66 of Half Moon Bay, Marciano Martinez Jimenez, 50 (Moss Beach), Jingzhi Lu, 64 (Half Moon Bay), Zhishen Liu, 73 (San Francisco), and Aixiang Zhang, 74 (San Francisco).

Jose Romero Perez, a man his late 30s, has been identified as the seventh victim by The Mercury News.

Read more at NBC Bay Area