Killing linked to statewide brothel ring; arrests made
Authorities are searching for two additional suspects connected to the case
A deadly shooting at an upscale North San Jose apartment complex last month has been linked to a statewide brothel ring, and at least three people have been arrested in the killing, authorities announced Wednesday.
The North San Jose shooting was reported the night of Sept. 28 at a home in the 300 block of Elan Village Lane, which hosts a series of high-end apartment units north of Montague Expressway. Officers found 31-yearold Xingjian Li suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Li, who recently hailed from San Gabriel, located east of Los Angeles, died soon afterward at a hospital.
Police say that apartment unit was operating as a brothel.
Three Southern California men have been arrested in connection with the homicide: An Yan, 28, of Baldwin Park; Lin Tao, 27, of Monterey Park; and Panpan Huang, a 36-year-old Chino resident.
Two other men seen in surveillance images connected with armed robberies and sexual assaults in Milpitas, Fremont and South San Francisco around the time of the Sept. 28 shooting in San Jose are wanted in connection with the case. All of those crime sites, authorities said, were also operating as brothels.
“They’re trying to blend into neighborhoods that people don’t consider a bad area,” San Jose police Sgt. Enrique Garcia said. “We know this is out there, and we need the public to provide us with information. Just because you’re
“They’re trying to blend into neighborhoods that people don’t consider a bad area . ... Just because you’re somewhere nice, residents still need to be vigilant.” — San Jose police Sgt.Enrique Garcia
somewhere nice, residents still need to be vigilant.”
At the time of the shooting, San Jose police characterized the killing as a home-invasion robbery by two men who forced their way inside the apartment, which was occupied by several women, though no other injuries were reported. Homicide detectives determined early on the attack was not random, but until Wednesday had not released any more details about the encounter.
An ensuing investigation linked the shooting to robberies and sexual assaults elsewhere in the Bay Area involving a group of men, including the three who were arrested.
The first case linked to the suspects was reported about 10:26 a.m. Sept. 27 when officers responding to a disturbance call on Murphy Ranch Road in Milpitas found a woman who had been robbed and sexually assaulted.
A similar call was received around 3 p.m. Sept. 28 in Fremont, where police there responded to a home-invasion robbery call and found
three women who were robbed at gunpoint, one of whom was also sexually assaulted. Later that night, the San Jose shooting occurred.
On Sept. 29, South San Francisco police were called out to McLellan Drive, where a woman who told investigators she was robbed and sexually assaulted at gunpoint two days earlier, on Sept. 27.
Once the three initial suspects were identified, on Oct. 18 San Jose detectives accompanied the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department in tracking them at their homes, where they were all arrested without incident.
“All these agencies did a phenomenal job investigating their individual cases, and identifying the links between their investigations,” Garcia said. “The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department was instrumental in providing resources for this whole case to come together.”
Yan, Tao, and Huang were initially booked into the Los Angeles County Jail on suspicion of murder, assault with a deadly weapon, sexual assault, robbery, kidnapping, and conspiracy. All three have since been transported to the Santa Clara County jail, where they are being held without bail.
Investigators are seeking
the public’s help in identifying two other suspects, whose images were released by San Jose police in both surveillance images and video Wednesday.
The first outstanding suspect was described as a Chinese man in his late 20s, about 5 feet 10 inches tall, about 170 pounds, with a shaved head and last seen wearing a “school varsity type jacket” that is blue
with tan sleeves and a gray New York Knicks T-shirt. The second was described as a Chinese man in his late 30s, 6 feet 2 inches tall, 250 pounds, with straight black medium-length hair, and last seen wearing black aviator-style sunglasses, a black T-shirt, black shorts and black tennis shoes.
Police declined to comment on how the shooting victim was connected to the
suspects.
Additionally, investigators are seeking other victims linked to the aforementioned suspects, both in the Bay Area and in Southern California. Garcia noted that given the underworld elements of the crimes, people might be scared about reporting information, and stressed that police will protect their identities.
“We know there’s people out there with more information,” Garcia said. “They can remain anonymous.”
Anyone with information about the case can call San Jose police Detective Sgt. Raul Martinez of Detective Brian Meeker at 408277-5283 or leave a tip with Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers at 408-947-STOP or svcrimestoppers.org. Tipsters may be eligible for a cash reward.