NYPD: Prominent immigration attorney killed in his Queens office
NEW YORK -- A prominent immigration attorney was killed in Flushing, Queens on Monday.
Police sources say the suspect was his client.
CBS2's Thalia Perez spoke with friends of the victim.
Ai Wang brought flowers to lay at the office door of her friend of more than 30 years. Wang was among at least a dozen who turned out Monday afternoon after learning Li, 66, was stabbed to death.
"We've become very good friends and he's such a nice man. He's a very, very nice man. He helped all of our friends," Wang said.
Police said Li was stabbed in the neck and back at his fourth-floor office on 39th Avenue and Union Street just before noon. Wayne Zhu said his alleged killer had a motive for taking the well-known lawyer's life.
"Mr. Li didn't want to take her case and then she was angry and she retaliate. Today she came with the knife so with the intent to cause injury, to kill," Zhu said.
Police say 25-year-old Xiao Ning Zhang was taken into custody. Li's friends say before Monday Zhang had made an outburst in the office and police were called.
"Friday, they already have such a fight, a big fight, so they should know today," Wang said. "Why this morning when she visited the office again they didn't stop him, stop her, and they sent her to Mr. Li office."
Friends say Li was a married father who will be remembered as generous and kind.
Friends also say Li was jailed by the Chinese government in 1989 while in graduate school for taking part in the Tiananmen Square protests.