Delivery man killed in fight over Chinese food order: angry customer arrested

“We are all relieved that someone has been arrested”, Widow Eva Zhao said today, in a statement quoted by Daily News. “We are grateful to the NYPD and have every confidence that the Queens District Attorney will do justice to Zhiwen Yan, a loving and kind husband, father, son, friend, and community member.”

A witness told police that Yan was shot by the driver of a Lexus SUV who then sped away from the crime scene. The victim worked for more than a decade at “Great Wall”, a restaurant on Northern Boulevard whose manager, Kai Yang (53 ), alerted the NYPD about a problematic client who was driving the same type of vehicle and with whom they had had problems in November and January.

The police quickly focused on Hirsch, but were slow to gather enough evidence to accuse him. He was taken into custody without incident last night, an NYPD spokesman said. Several agents were inside the defendant’s apartment hours later, while he continued the investigation.

“Zhiwen Yan was a beloved member of his Queens community whose tragic murder in April was heartbreaking,” New York Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell posted earlier today on Twitter. “@NYPDDetectives never wavered in their investigation, and have now arrested Glenn Hirsch, aged 51. He has been charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon.”

Originally it was said that the alleged disgruntled customer had a history of armed robbery, and had argued with Yang, the victim’s boss, due to the lack of duck sauce in a Chinese food order.

Yan was on his way to his next food delivery when he was shot in the chest and fell off the scooter. Paramedics took him to Elmhurst Hospital Center, where he died, barely 45 years old. He left behind a widow and three orphaned children. He also had two other jobs to support his family.