Cancer patient charged with attempted murder over alleged plot to kill 3 doctors
Police said Yue Chen was traveling to the Bay Area to kill three of his doctors.
— -- A California man diagnosed with stage IV cancer has been charged with attempted murder after he allegedly drove hundreds of miles to kill three doctors who had previously treated him, according to police.
Law enforcement agencies from across the state said they teamed up last week to thwart Yue Chen's alleged plot.
On the morning of May 31, the Visalia Police Department alerted officers in Palo Alto that Chen may be traveling more than 200 miles from his home in Visalia to murder three of the doctors who had previously treated him in the Bay Area.
Visalia police determined that the 58-year-old suspect had rented a car and was missing from their jurisdiction, as were his two legally-owned handguns, according to a press release from the Palo Alto Police Department.
Police in Visalia said they had information that Chen was driving to the Bay Area that day with the intent to shoot three doctors after becoming upset about his medical condition and the treatment he had received from them.
Visalia police urged law enforcement agencies throughout the state to be on the lookout for Chen and also contacted multiple agencies in the Bay Area that had jurisdiction over the locations of the targeted doctors, as well as other doctors who had treated the suspect.
Citing concern for the suspect’s privacy, the Palo Alto Police Department would not release any additional information about Chen’s medical condition. However, the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office confirmed to ABC News that Chen has stage IV cancer.
Later that night, around 7:48 p.m. local time, the California Highway Patrol located and stopped Chen in his rental car, a red 2017 Nissan Rogue, on Highway 101 and Hellyer Avenue in San Jose. Officers said they found two loaded semi-automatic handguns with high-capacity magazines in the car within reach of the suspect, according to the Palo Alto Police Department.
According to ABC-owned station KGO, investigators also discovered a face mask, a notebook with the names and home addresses of the three doctors and a note titled “Why Do I Kill” that cited the reasons “revenge” and “this is the possible result if you treat people as an animal."
Police said detectives learned that Chen likely had planned on going to the doctors’ homes, not their workplaces, to kill them. The names of the targeted doctors have not been released.
Chen was arrested without incident that night and transported to a local hospital for treatment related to his medical condition. He was discharged from the hospital later in the evening and booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail for attempted murder and carrying a loaded firearm.
The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office has since filed three felony counts of attempted murder against him, according to the Palo Alto Police Department.
Chen was arraigned on June 2. He is scheduled to appear back in court June 28.
