A Chinese chemistry student caught injecting an opioid solution through the hole in his neighbor's door has been deported. reported the New York Post.
Xuming Li, a chemistry graduate, allegedly placed the strong opioid painkillers methadone and hydrocodone, mixed with an unknown harmful element, through his neighbor's door during an argument over noise.
Li was arrested after Umar Abdullah placed a secret camera in a plant pot outside his home on Palm Springs Boulevard, Tampa, and caught him red-handed.
The 36-year-old chemistry researcher was charged with possession of a controlled substance, battery on the homeowners and aggravated stalking.
However, Li's attorney, Adam Bantner, told the Post that Li had been returned to China by U.S. immigration officials.
The recent University of South Florida graduate was caught on camera after the family planted a hidden lens in a houseplant outside their home
Umar Abdullah, who lives in the house, said he noticed an “unpleasant” odor and he, his wife and young daughter started vomiting, so he placed a camera outside.
Sources told the publication that the case against him is now largely defunct.
Li had pleaded not guilty to several charges, including battery and possession of a controlled substance.
When Li missed a scheduled hearing on Monday due to his deportation, a judge issued an arrest warrant for him that would only take effect in the unlikely event of his return to the US.
Li had attended the University of Southern Florida (USF), but Abdullah said the school “took very quick action by imposing an expulsion sanction” after the incident.
Worried father Abdullah revealed last summer how his family suffered from hair loss in addition to vomiting, dizziness and severe headaches. In June this year, they found “tufts of hair” on their baby girl's pillow several times.
“Our baby lost her hair,” he told DailyMail.com. 'That one month we noticed our baby's unusual hair in the shower.
'We googled and found out that babies don't suffer from hair loss, and we also noticed our hair in the shower.
“We can't prove it was related, but we think it was the chemicals.”
Li complained about the lack of sleep and hearing noise from Abdullah's apartment
Li was caught after the family's father, Umar Abdullah, reported he suffered from an “unpleasant odor” and difficulty breathing for more than a month until he hid a camera in a potted houseplant outside their Tampa home. (Photo: Abdullah with his daughter)
Neighbor from hell Xuming Li allegedly contaminated a Florida family's door with so much 'chemical' that it made their baby sick. They hid a camera outside their Tampa home and caught him red-handed (pictured)
Abdullah's hidden camera footage showed Li appearing to take out a syringe, filling it with clear liquid and injecting it into the crack in Abdullah's doorframe.
Abdullah added that he was shocked by what his secret camera recording revealed, as Li seemed like an “ordinary man” and even a “friendly” neighbor who often stopped to chat in the hallway.
He told DailyMail.com that Li is also a father of two young children, although he has never seen Li with the children despite regularly seeing his wife take them to the playground.
Their relationship was rosy in August 2022, when Abdullah's baby was born, with Li texting him to ask how his wife and newborn daughter were doing.
Abdullah told DailyMail.com that Li even came to their door with gifts for their daughter, congratulating them by text on their “really cute girl.”
But his noise complaints began days later, when Li asked if the family could “walk slower” to avoid hearing their footsteps at night.
Text messages seen by DailyMail.com show Li regularly complaining about small noises – from the toilet seat moving to someone dropping their phone on the floor.
Meanwhile, Abdullah offered to buy soft shoes to reduce the impact of their footsteps, and to visit Li's apartment so he could see for himself what it sounded like.
But tensions came to a head in March this year when Abdullah's family came to visit, and Li called the police within 15 minutes of their arrival, complaining about the sound of their luggage scraping on the floor.
The footage showed Li, wearing casual sweatpants, crouching and appearing to place something under their door
“We were shaking,” Abdullah told WFLA. 'We can't imagine that he will come and do anything'
Three months later, Li sought revenge by planting a noxious mixture of chemicals at the family's front door while they were away at a conference in Ohio.
When they returned in early June, they were plagued by an “unpleasant” odor and soon began to feel nauseous and lose clumps of hair.
Abdullah thought the smell was coming from his air conditioner or his water heater, but plumbers and officials who investigated found no problems.
His landlord even replaced the heater and had his air ducts and vents cleaned, but the chemical smell persisted.
Desperate to find out what was plaguing his family, Abdullah called the fire department who sent a Hazmat team, but their tests turned up nothing.
“I was sniffing like a dog,” he said.
The sniff test led him to his doorway, where he discovered a small crack in the corner.
Only beginning to suspect that some tampering had taken place, Abdullah placed a hidden camera in a potted plant outside his door.
His daughter fell ill again, prompting Abdullah to watch the footage – and he was shocked by what he saw.
“We were shaking,” he said. “We can't imagine him coming to do anything.”
The footage showed Li, wearing casual sweatpants, crouching and appearing to place something under their door.
Shocked, Abdullah adjusted the camera angle from door level to eye level to capture what Li was doing in the last few moments.
This time, his footage appeared to show Li taking out a syringe, filling it with clear liquid and injecting it into the crack in Abdullah's door frame.
The terrified father immediately took his family out of the house and called the police.
He rushed his family to the hospital in a panic — an experience he described in his victim impact statement for a hearing against Li at USF, resulting in his expulsion.
“My heart was racing and my head felt like it was spinning,” he said in the statement seen by DailyMail.com.
“My wife and I rushed to the emergency room, holding our precious daughter, fearing the worst.
'Seeing her tiny hand with an intravenous catheter, as I endured those painful pricks and tests, tore me up inside.
'Her innocent face, contorted with pain and fear, filled my soul with unbearable pain.
“All because of that heartless criminal, Mr. Xuming Li, whose actions had brought so much misery to our little angel.
“My eyes filled with tears as I held my daughter close and prayed for her safety.
“The thought that she would have to endure this suffering because of someone's sinister actions was too much.”
Abdullah said he was relieved that the tests showed “nothing critical,” but his doctor advised his family to inform all their future counselors about the incident in case they suffered “elevated platelet levels and possible long-term effects.”
“We still live in constant trauma, haunted by the memories of that terrible day,” Abdullah said.
“Now, after a month, almost every other day, we are still cleaning the door with disinfectant, hoping to get rid of the poison that the monster injected us to inhale.
'Since the incident we have lost our sense of security and can no longer leave our house alone.
'My wife and daughter used to enjoy their mornings when I worked, but now they are paralyzed by fear and are afraid to go out alone.'