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The so-called “duck saucer killer” accused of gunning down a New York City Chinese food delivery man on his motorbike in April could possibly make bail Monday, according to a report.
Glenn Hirsch, 51, was initially ordered held without bail in connection to the April 30 murder of 45-year-old Zhiwen Yan, who was shot to death on his motorbike at an intersection in the upscale neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, while making deliveries for the Great Wall Restaurant.
NYPD waited about a month to build their case before arresting Hirsch on June 2 on a warrant for murder and criminal possession of a loaded firearm at his apartment on 141st St. in Jamaica, where police found a refrigerator stuffed with packets of duck sauce, soy sauce and ketchup, sources told the New York Daily News.
Initially held without bond, court records show Queens Criminal Court Judge Kenneth Holder changed bail conditions on June 8 for Hirsch, setting bond at $500,000.
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The newspaper reported that Hirsch’s family has been gathering the money to secure his release and could post bail as soon as Monday if permitted to do so by the presiding judge.
Hirsch, who has 10 prior sealed arrests, has held an “obsessive point of contention” against the Chinese food restaurant in the months prior to Yan’s murder, according to the Queens district attorney.
Detectives had been building a case against Hirsch since last December stemming from several disturbing encounters reported by the restaurant manager that began on Nov. 30, 2021, when Hirsch was allegedly outraged over not receiving enough duck sauce with his meal.
For about an hour prior to Yan’s murder, police said surveillance video showed Hirsch circling the restaurant and then driving his car following Yan before allegedly shooting him to death. Hirsch has pleaded not guilty.
U.S. Rep. Grace Meng, a Democrat representing New York’s 6th congressional district in Queens, released a joint statement with other state and city politicians Saturday acknowledging what they described as “deeply troubling” reports that Hirsch may be released on Monday.
They thanked Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz for requesting that Hirsch remain in custody.
“Granting bail would be the wrong decision, and we hope that it does not happen,” the statement said. “Someone who is a clear and present danger should not be released back into the community that still grieves Zhiwen Yan’s death. We have been in touch with the 112th Precinct to get assurance that Glenn Hirsch’s weapons have been confiscated and won’t be returned to him if bail is granted, that he won’t be able to legally purchase additional firearms, and that his movements will be closely monitored including a ban on going near the Great Wall Restaurant and its delivery zones.”
“But despite these assurances, this rumored and reported development about bail is not welcomed,” they added. “It is terrifying and unsettling, and we resolutely oppose it. We will be watching what happens Monday.”
Originally from Fuzhou in Eastern China, Yan had worked at the Queens restaurant for more than a decade and was the primary breadwinner for his wife and their three children aged 2, 12 and 14, family members and his grieving widow told local news outlets following his shocking killing.
The incident rocked the once-perceived safe Forest Hills community that has been experiencing a rise in crime.
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Yan’s killing was the second homicide in 2022 for the precinct, which had not seen a homicide since 2016. The first was the murder of Orsolya Gaal, a married mother of two whose body was found stuffed in a duffel bag on the street about a half-mile from her home in March. Her handyman and alleged ex-lover was later charged and accused of brutally stabbing her to death for not wanting to resume their affair.