QUINCY —
Li Rong Zhang was not using the silver, charcoal-fired wok to cook a meal for her 8-year-old son inside her Germantown apartment. She was using it to kill him, and herself, investigators said.
In a Boston hospital room Friday, Zhang, 39, was arraigned for her son’s murder after police say a motionless Brandon Yang was found face-down on a bed in the apartment. Police said poisonous fumes had left Zhang unconscious on the bedroom floor.
At a press conference Friday, police said a large bureau had been placed in front of the door, an apparent attempt to block access to the room where the wok was burning Thursday.
Meanwhile, officials are investigating the response to a smoke alarm call a resident in the same building said she placed two hours before Zhang and her son were found, a call that never reached the fire department.
The announcement that Zhang is charged with murder capped a day of mourning in city schools for Brandon Yang, a standout student at Snug Harbor Community School.
“Brandon was one of those kids that every teacher wanted to have in their class,” Principal Dan Gilbert said. “He was adored by our school teachers and students alike, and he was just a model of what a student should be.”
Gilbert said Brandon had been recognized by the school for exemplary behavior such as friendliness and good attendance. Brandon did not attend school Thursday, School Superintendent Richard DeCristofaro said.
Firefighters responding to a call placed by Zhang’s other son, 16-year-old Deming Yang, discovered Brandon’s body inside the Yardarm Lane apartment in Germantown.
According to a police affidavit, Deming Yang told police he arrived home from school at about 3:30 p.m. Thursday and tried to enter the building through the rear and front doors, both of which were locked. Yang “said that it was unusual for both doors to be locked,” according to the affidavit, written by State Police investigator Brian Brooks.
The affidavit said Yang eventually forced his way in through the front door and went to his second-floor bedroom, which was empty. He then went to his mother’s room, but the door was locked. He kicked it several times but was unable to get inside. He called 911.
Firefighters arrived at about 3:44 p.m. and used a crowbar to break the bedroom door lock. They found Zhang and her son along with a wok, a lighter and charcoal briquettes.
Lt. Shawn Darcy and firefighter John Christiani administered CPR to Zhang and Brandon outside the home. Brandon was pronounced dead at 4:50 p.m. at Quincy Medical Center. Zhang was taken to Boston Medical Center.
The affidavit states Zhang was treated for carbon monoxide poisoning and smoke inhalation.
An autopsy Friday on Brandon Yangindicated a need for further tests before his cause of death could be determined, Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey said.
After she had sufficiently recovered, Zhang was arraigned Friday afternoon in the intensive care unit of Boston Medical Center. She is being held without bail until a Jan. 28 hearing.
“Once she is capable and able to be removed, she will be taken to another secure facility,” Morrissey said. “She will remain, at least for the foreseeable future, in a Boston hospital under guard and under arrest.”
Quincy Police Chief Paul Keenan said the grounds for a murder charge were established through witness interviews and evidence collected in a late-night search of the apartment after a warrant had been obtained.
Keenan said investigators believe Zhang was trying to commit a murder-suicide. No suicide note was found.
Zhang was divorced from the father of her two children, according to a court document.
Keenan said police received a call from someone in the apartment in 2005 because of a verbal altercation between Zhang and her ex-husband. Charges were not pressed and a restraining order was not sought, he said.
Alison Goodwin, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Children and Families, declined to say if the agency had any prior involvement with the family. The father is caring for his 16-year-old son, she said.
http://www.patriotledger.com/features/x512659107/Quincy-mother-used-wok-as-means-to-murder-her-8-year-old-son-investigators-say
In a Boston hospital room Friday, Zhang, 39, was arraigned for her son’s murder after police say a motionless Brandon Yang was found face-down on a bed in the apartment. Police said poisonous fumes had left Zhang unconscious on the bedroom floor.
At a press conference Friday, police said a large bureau had been placed in front of the door, an apparent attempt to block access to the room where the wok was burning Thursday.
Meanwhile, officials are investigating the response to a smoke alarm call a resident in the same building said she placed two hours before Zhang and her son were found, a call that never reached the fire department.
The announcement that Zhang is charged with murder capped a day of mourning in city schools for Brandon Yang, a standout student at Snug Harbor Community School.
“Brandon was one of those kids that every teacher wanted to have in their class,” Principal Dan Gilbert said. “He was adored by our school teachers and students alike, and he was just a model of what a student should be.”
Gilbert said Brandon had been recognized by the school for exemplary behavior such as friendliness and good attendance. Brandon did not attend school Thursday, School Superintendent Richard DeCristofaro said.
Firefighters responding to a call placed by Zhang’s other son, 16-year-old Deming Yang, discovered Brandon’s body inside the Yardarm Lane apartment in Germantown.
According to a police affidavit, Deming Yang told police he arrived home from school at about 3:30 p.m. Thursday and tried to enter the building through the rear and front doors, both of which were locked. Yang “said that it was unusual for both doors to be locked,” according to the affidavit, written by State Police investigator Brian Brooks.
The affidavit said Yang eventually forced his way in through the front door and went to his second-floor bedroom, which was empty. He then went to his mother’s room, but the door was locked. He kicked it several times but was unable to get inside. He called 911.
Firefighters arrived at about 3:44 p.m. and used a crowbar to break the bedroom door lock. They found Zhang and her son along with a wok, a lighter and charcoal briquettes.
Lt. Shawn Darcy and firefighter John Christiani administered CPR to Zhang and Brandon outside the home. Brandon was pronounced dead at 4:50 p.m. at Quincy Medical Center. Zhang was taken to Boston Medical Center.
The affidavit states Zhang was treated for carbon monoxide poisoning and smoke inhalation.
An autopsy Friday on Brandon Yangindicated a need for further tests before his cause of death could be determined, Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey said.
After she had sufficiently recovered, Zhang was arraigned Friday afternoon in the intensive care unit of Boston Medical Center. She is being held without bail until a Jan. 28 hearing.
“Once she is capable and able to be removed, she will be taken to another secure facility,” Morrissey said. “She will remain, at least for the foreseeable future, in a Boston hospital under guard and under arrest.”
Quincy Police Chief Paul Keenan said the grounds for a murder charge were established through witness interviews and evidence collected in a late-night search of the apartment after a warrant had been obtained.
Keenan said investigators believe Zhang was trying to commit a murder-suicide. No suicide note was found.
Zhang was divorced from the father of her two children, according to a court document.
Keenan said police received a call from someone in the apartment in 2005 because of a verbal altercation between Zhang and her ex-husband. Charges were not pressed and a restraining order was not sought, he said.
Alison Goodwin, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Children and Families, declined to say if the agency had any prior involvement with the family. The father is caring for his 16-year-old son, she said.
http://www.patriotledger.com/features/x512659107/Quincy-mother-used-wok-as-means-to-murder-her-8-year-old-son-investigators-say
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