Northern California prosecutors on Wednesday filed seven counts of murder and one count of attempted murder against the man accused of fatally shooting farmworkers Monday in the picturesque coastal town of Half Moon Bay. The suspect said that he believed they had «disrespected» him for the victims.
The San Mateo County Coroner’s Office named six of the seven victims: Zhishen Liu, 73, of San Francisco; Marciano Martinez Jimenez, 50, of Moss Beach; Aixiang Zhang, 74, of San Francisco; Qizhong Cheng, 66, of Half Moon Bay; Jingzhi Lu, 64, of Half Moon Bay; and Yetao Bing, 43, whose hometown was listed as unknown.
The charges brought by District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe against suspect Chunli Zhao, 66, included the name of the seventh victim, José Romero Pérez. and one count of attempted murder in connection with the shooting of Pedro Romero Perez.
Zhao made his first court appearance on Wednesday afternoon in Redwood City.
The chained defendant in a red jail jumpsuit entered the courtroom carrying a yellow piece of paper and, on occasion, used that paper to hide his face from the cameras.
Zhao, speaking through a Mandarin interpreter, confirmed his name and San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Susan Jakubowski appointed attorney Jonathan D. McDougall to represent him.
Judge Jakubowski ordered Zhao held without bail and set his arraignment for February 16.
Investigators have called the killings acts of «workplace violence,» and Zhao worked with some of the victims.
Zhao worked at Mountain Mushroom Farm, one of two farm businesses where workers were killed Monday afternoon, authorities said.
NBC Bay Area cited law enforcement sources with direct knowledge of the investigation to report that Zhao had told investigators that his coworkers had «disrespected» him in the years leading up to the shooting.
Zhao was arrested about two hours after the shooting while sitting in his parked car outside the Half Moon Bay sheriff’s substation.
Gemma Di Casimirro Y irene byon contributed.