Sunset Park Murderer Shot Man While He Was Asleep In Bed, DA Says

SUNSET PARK, BROOKLYN — Prosecutors revealed more details Friday about how they captured the suspected murderer of a 46-year-old man that was found lying in a Sunset Park hotel bed shot twice in the head.

Sam Chen, 41, was arraigned Friday on second-degree murder and weapons charges for the June 26 killing, which he was arrested for a week later. The arraignment brings to light new details about the crime, including the name of the victim, Da Li, and the fact that he apparently knew his alleged murderer.

Li, who had been living in a hotel, was seen just hours before his murder getting out of the car with Chen, prosecutors said. The two got out of Chen's Nissan and went into Li's hotel together, where Chen would return later that day to allegedly carry out the crime.

“This defendant allegedly planned his attack and callously executed the victim as he was asleep in his bed," District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said. "We intend to prosecute this case vigorously to hold the defendant fully accountable for taking a life.”

The videos, prosecutors said, showed Chen driving near 51st Street and Seventh Avenue around 8:15 a.m. The two got out of the car and went into the hotel, which was on 51st Street, and Chen left shortly after by himself.

Chen, who lived only several blocks away on 43rd Street, came back to the hotel around 12:45 p.m. and put on a surgical mask before going inside, prosecutors said. Not long after, he came back out of the building with the surgical mask still on.

Cleaning staff would find Li's body two days later. He had been shot twice in his forehead with a 9mm gun, according to shell casings investigators found.

Investigators then got a search warrant for Chen's car and found a loaded Taurus 9mm semi-automatic pistol that matched the evidence. They arrested Chen at John F. Kennedy Airport, where he was supposed to board a flight to California, on July 3.

If Chen is convicted, he faces up to 25 years to life in prison, prosecutors said.

He is being held without bail and will return to court in October.