A 60-YEAR-old man has been arrested over the gruesome killing of a high-stakes poker player after her burning body was found in a parking lot.
Susie Zhao, 33, who was known as Susie Q in the professional poker world, had swept up at least $222,671 in gambling winnings before her mysterious death.
Police say she was killed and set on fire before her burned body was found in a parking lot in White Lake Township, Oakland County, Michigan on July 13.
The suspect was pulled over on a warrant on Friday morning by the White Lake Township police department, Detective Lt. Chris Hild told the Detroit Free Press.
Law enforcement said the suspect was a 60-year-old man from Pontiac, Michigan, but declined to provide his name.
No results in Oakland County Jail inmate records consistent with the details of the case could be found at this time.
The Beijing-born, Michigan-raised poker player who lived between LA and Las Vegas was remembered by a colleague, Clayton Fletcher, as "a very strong player who also liked to have fun at the table."
Her career high to date was a hot streak in 2012, in which she won $73,805 at the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, according to the Hendon Mob poker database.
Zhao was described as a "free spirit" who "followed her dreams" and "absolutely brilliant" by her friend, Meredith Rogowski, at a police press conference broadcast by WXYZ Detroit.
Zhao's death remains shrouded in mystery. The local police department, who are working on this investigation with the FBI, are not sure whether the killing is connected to her career.
"We have to determine whether this is a cover-up or this may be some sort of retaliatory incident because of her profession," Detective Lt. Hild told WXYZ in a press conference.
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