Hong Zheng, a 42-year-old Asian male, was tragically murdered on April 15, 2018, in Durham, North Carolina. Zheng, the owner of China Wok restaurant on South Roxboro Street, had just returned home with his wife, Shirley Chan, when they were ambushed in the driveway of their home on Carlton Crossing Drive. Zheng was gunned down in his car, and his wife was grazed by bullets.
Despite being injured, Chan managed to return fire with a gun the family kept for protection against robbery attempts.
The investigation into Zheng's murder led to the arrest of five individuals: Maurice Owen Wiley Jr., Hykeem Deshun Cox, Darryl Bradford, Semaj Maleek Bradley, and Charles Winfor Daniels. These men were charged with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon, and other related offenses. Wiley, who was 28 at the time of his arrest, was the first to be tried on federal charges and was found guilty of attempting to interfere with commerce by robbery and using a gun in a violent crime. The state charges related to the murder were dismissed due to the federal prosecution.
The motive behind the attack appeared to be robbery, as Zheng's family had been targeted multiple times in the past. Cyndy Yu-Robinson, a board member for North Carolina Asian Americans Together, highlighted that targeted attacks on Asian American businesses had spiked in recent years, with criminals perceiving them as cash-based, unarmed, and defenseless. The case remains under investigation, with authorities urging anyone with additional information to come forward.
