Waxhaw teacher’s death earns international attention as rumors spread of related killing at hotel

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police aren’t yet addressing rumors of a link between the Sept. 9 fatal shooting of Waxhaw teacher Ruijuan Guo in South End and the Sept. 12 killing of a man in a Clanton Road hotel.

But multiple media outlets are saying the dead man found on Clanton Road, 40-year-old Louis Henry Fuqua, was a suspect in 33-year-old Guo’s death.

Ruijuan’s shooting has been international news among Chinese language news outlets, which featured such headlines as “Mourn! US Gun Death of Chinese Female Teacher.”

Guo died of her wounds about 2:30 a.m. Wednesday at Carolinas Medical Center, surrounded by family members, police said.

The robbery on East Park Avenue has raised eyebrows both for the viciousness of the shooting – Guo was a bystander – and because it was in a part of Charlotte that is packed with restaurants and clubs popular with young professionals.

According to a police report, Guo was getting into a vehicle when the robber approached, pulled a gun on her boyfriend and demanded his wallet. Police said the boyfriend “could not get his wallet out of his pocket fast enough, so the suspect shot (Guo) in the head and then ran.”

It was three days later – before Guo died – that police found Louis Fuqua at the Econo Lodge in the 500 block of Clanton Road around 11:44 p.m. He had been shot and killed. No suspect has been identified.

Observer news partner WBTV has reported police sources saying Fuqua was a suspect in the shooting of Guo. WBTV’s source further said Fuqua was probably killed by other suspects "to keep him from talking to police.”

Police have yet to release a description of a suspect in Guo’s shooting.

Ruijuan was in her fourth year with a Mandarin Immersion Program at Kensington Elementary in Waxhaw, where counselors stood ready Thursday.

“This is a great loss for all of us and we are extremely saddened,” said school Principal Rachel Clarke.

The robbery occurred after Guo had apparently attended a concert by the Charlotte group Beyond the Fade. Band member Neil Jackson says a fundraiser to cover her final expenses is set for Sunday, Sept. 25, at the Kannapolis Performing Arts Center, 3 to 6 p.m. Money raised through donations at the event will also help her fiance, identified only as Nate, travel to China for her funeral.

“We feel absolutely terrible about what happened and feel it is our responsibility to help make a difference and take some financial burden off of her family and Nate himself,” Jackson said in a Facebook post. “This was a horrible tragedy and could have happened to any one of us leaving (the show) that night.”

This story was originally published September 15, 2016 at 10:55 AM with the headline "Waxhaw teacher’s death earns international attention as rumors spread of related killing at hotel."