May 23, 2024 - On Wednesday, at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, Qing Ming Yu, also known as “Allen,” and Zhe Zhang, also known as “Zack,” were sentenced by United States District Judge Carol Bagley Amon to mandatory life imprisonment for their roles in the February 12, 2019 killing of 31-year-old Xin “Chris” Gu outside a karaoke bar in Queens.  In October 2023, following a two-week trial, a federal jury found the defendants guilty of murder-for-hire and murder-for-hire conspiracy. As part of the sentence, the Court ordered the defendants to pay $1,035,000 in restitution to the victim’s family.

Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Edward A. Caban, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the sentences.

“Allen Yu set out to kill Xin Gu because he started a rival business and Zhang agreed to carry out the execution-style murder without hesitation,” stated United States Attorney Peace.  “Driven by greed and revenge, they hired a hitman to commit a brutal murder of a young man, traumatizing the victim’s family as well as the Flushing community.  The defendants will spend the rest of their lives behind prison walls for this premediated murder.  I hope today’s sentences bring some measure of closure to Xin Gu’s family.” 

“Threatened by Xin Gu’s entrepreneurial skills, Allen Yu sought revenge and unwarranted retribution against his former employee. After securing Zhang and a hitman as accomplices to his calculated plot, the trio unjustly ended the life of a promising young businessman. Today’s lifelong sentences serve as a just punishment for two individuals who deemed cold-blooded murder as an acceptable response for slighted feelings,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Smith.

“Today’s sentences bring with them some satisfaction to the dedicated investigators who worked on this horrific case and, hopefully, a modicum of relief to the family and friends of the victim,” stated NYPD Commissioner Caban.  “Life in prison is an appropriate outcome for the crimes these men coldly carried out. I commend and thank our NYPD investigators for their meticulous work and our partners at the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York for their diligent prosecution.”

Allen Yu was the president of Amaco, a multi-million-dollar construction company that renovated apartments in New York City.  In 2015, Xin Gu joined Amaco as a project manager.  Although Amaco’s business nearly quadrupled after he joined the company, Xin Gu became concerned about the company’s financial viability and resigned in 2018 to start his own property development company called KG Management.  After Xin Gu’s departure, several clients and employees also cut ties with Allen Yu’s business.  Multiple companies took their lucrative projects from Amaco to KG Management, including one project valued at $1 million.  Enraged at Xin Gu’s perceived disloyalty, Allen Yu hired Zhe Zhang and another co-conspirator to kill Xin Gu in exchange for payment.  Zhang in turn hired another co-conspirator, Antony Abreu, to act as the shooter in carrying out the murder. 

On the evening of February 11, 2019, into the following morning, Xin Gu’s new company hosted a celebration of the Lunar New Year at Lake Pavilion restaurant in Flushing. After that dinner, Xin Gu and a smaller group went to a karaoke bar, Grand Slam KTV, on Fowler Avenue.  The hit team learned of the party and with Zhe Zhang serving as the getaway driver, Abreu walked up to the victim and shot him multiple times as he waited for an Uber, killing him.  Over the next three months, Allen Yu paid a co-conspirator $150,000 and Zhe Zhang $30,000 for the murder.

Abreu was convicted of murder-for-hire and murder-for-hire conspiracy following a two-week trial in April 2024 and is awaiting sentencing.

The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Organized Crime and Gangs Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Devon Lash, Nadia E. Moore, Gabriel Park and Eric Silverberg are in charge of the prosecution with the assistance of Paralegal Specialist Elizabeth Reed and Legal Assistant Thomas “Cole” Englert. 

The Defendants:

QING MING YU (also known as “Allen”)
Age:  56
Oyster Bay, New York

ZHE ZHANG (also known as “Zack”)
Age:  36
Arcadia, California and Flushing, New York

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 22-CR-208 (CBA)
Source: DOJ Release