New York ‘duck sauce killer’ Glenn Hirsch could be freed on bail
- Hirsch was arrested on June 2 on charges of shooting dead Chinese food delivery worker Zhiwen Yan
- Hirsch allegedly stalked Yan and other staff at New York’s Great Wall restaurant for weeks over his demand for more duck sauce
The condiment-obsessed suspect accused of shooting to death a beloved Queens, New York Chinese food delivery worker could be freed on bail on Monday, alarmed local legislators said on Sunday.
While Glenn Hirsch was initially ordered held without bail for the April 30 killing of Zhiwen Yan, Queens Criminal Court Judge Kenneth Holder changed the bail conditions on June 8, setting bail at US$500,000, court records show.
Hirsch, who has 10 prior sealed arrests, has pleaded not guilty. His family is in the process of raising the hefty sum and may post bail on Monday if the presiding judge allows it, borough officials said.
“Granting bail would be the wrong decision and we hope that it does not happen,” congresswoman Grace Meng said on Sunday. “Someone who is a clear and present danger should not be released back into the community that still grieves Zhiwen Yan’s death.”
Hirsch, 51, was arrested on June 2 on charges of shooting dead Yan after stalking the delivery man and other staff at the Great Wall restaurant for weeks over his demand for more duck sauce in what the Queens district attorney called an “obsessive point of contention”.
Police said on the night of the murder, Hirsch circled the restaurant’s building multiple times then followed Yan as he drove off on his scooter to make a delivery before shooting him on the street.
Detectives had been building a case against Hirsch ever since learning he had been involved in ongoing tensions with the manager at the Great Wall restaurant, starting on November 30 when he was furious there was not enough duck sauce for him to take home with his meal.