Suspect in mushroom farm shooting admits his crime in interview, claims he was bullied at work

The suspect in the Half Moon Bay shooting that occurred at two mushroom farms on Monday afternoon sat for an interview with NBC’s Bay Area affiliate, admitting his crimes and claiming he was bullied and overworked prior to the killing of several of his current and former coworkers.

Zhao Chunli is a 66-year old farm worker who lived and worked at the first farm where he first opened fire, Mountain Mushroom Farm. He then traveled a few miles to his former place of employment, another mushroom farm called Concord Farms, where he shot more people. Chunli then reportedly drove himself to the nearby sheriff’s substation and waited in the parking lot before being apprehended and taken into custody.

During the jailhouse interview with NBC Bay Area’s Janelle Wang, Zhao confessed to committing the shootings, which left 7 people dead and one wounded, and expressed regret over his actions. He claims he was bullied and overworked during his time at the farms and that he was often “forced to work long hours, from early morning to sometimes 9 o’clock at night.”

Zhao also told Wang he believes he has a mental illness and that he has been battling it for many years. He described his own state to Wang as unstable and told her he wished to see a  doctor. “He says he sees things unclearly and wants to be evaluated by a doctor,” Wang said. “He said he is not in his right mind.”

The interview took place the day after Zhao was officially charged by prosecutors with murder in relation to the Monday shootings.