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He later became a naturalized citizen of the United States, and resided in Daly City, California, where he was assassinated by mob members who had been reportedly trained by Republic of China military intelligence. On 15 October 1984, Liu was shot to death in the garage of his home in Daly City, California. His killers fled the country, returning to Taiwan.
They did not face trial until the United States. Federal Bureau of Investigation discovered a tape made by chief hitman Chen Chi-li implicating Republic of China military intelligence in the killing, whereupon they began to pressure the government to bring Liu"s killers to trial.
A month after his conviction, Chen retracted this statement. However, Tung Kuei-sen, another one of the killers, corroborated this at his own trial in the United States in 1988, stating that the order for Liu"s death had been given by the Taiwanese government.
Tung (who had previously been cleared of racketeering charges related to the assassination) was convicted. Helen Liu, Henry Liu"s wife, filed suit in United States federal district court against the Republic of China.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled (Liu v Republic of China) that the Republic of China government was liable under the doctrine of respondeat superior.
A petition for certiorari from the Republic of China government to the United States. Supreme Court was subsequently rejected. The suit was later settled out of court. The assassination was the subject of the book Fires of the Dragon by David East. Kaplan and portrayed in the 2009 film Formosa Betrayed.