Harvard Medical School professor beat pregnant woman and made her sit in kitchen with gas leaking from stove burner while windows were shut, police say

A prominent Massachusetts medical professor has been accused of launching a violent attack on a pregnant woman and trapping her inside a kitchen as gas leaked from a stove burner just weeks before she gave birth. Feng Tian, 38, an assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School, was arrested last week for allegedly carrying out two domestic assaults against an unidentified woman, according to records obtained by The Harvard Crimson.In the chilling allegations, the woman told police she was attacked and threatened with a knife on two separate occasions - most recently in April, when she was nine months pregnant. She told investigators that during that incident, Tian allegedly slapped her, shoved her onto a bed and pinned her down with his forearm pressed against her throat. He then allegedly confronted her with a large kitchen knife and forced her to eat in the kitchen while gas rapidly escaped from an extinguished stove burner. Each time she tried to open the windows, Tian closed them again, according to an incident report obtained by The Crimson.He was charged with two counts each of assault with a dangerous weapon, assault and battery on a pregnant victim, and domestic assault and battery, as well as one count of threatening to commit a crime.Tian appeared before a judge in Brookline District Court on July 15, where he pleaded not guilty to all charges. He has since been released without bail under strict conditions, including a no-contact order with the victim. Feng Tian, 38, an assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School, was arrested last week for allegedly carrying out two domestic assaults against an unidentified woman Tian pleaded not guilty to two counts each of assault with a dangerous weapon, assault and battery on a pregnant victim, and domestic assault and battery, as well as one count of threatening to commit a crime in Brookline District Court July 15The allegations against Tian were revealed this week after The Crimson obtained a police report from the Brookline Police Department detailing the woman’s claims of repeated domestic violence attacks. Soon after the April incident, the woman said she fled the home and sought medical treatment at a hospital, where Tian allegedly visited her and brought her food before she disclosed the abuse allegations, according to the report. It was there that she finally laid bare the alleged abuse to staff, who connected her with domestic violence specialists and helped arrange her safe move to a shelter. Thirteen days after escaping the home, she gave birth. The woman later told police that Tian allegedly forced her to sign a proxy form granting him the authority to make medical decisions on her behalf during the delivery, according to records obtained by The Crimson.She said she eventually removed him from the form and asked hospital staff to prevent him from attending the birth of her child. Tian was served with a temporary restraining order in June. Weeks later, the victim reported the alleged attacks to Salem police, who referred her case to Brookline police. The first alleged incident of violence, however, dates back to 2023 - just months before Tian founded a laboratory at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and took up his post at Harvard, according to The Crimson. The victim said Tian allegedly slapped her, shoved her onto a bed and pinned her down with his forearm pressed against her throat, according to a police report obtained by The Harvard Crimson In April, Tian allegedly confronted the woman with a large kitchen knife while she was nine-months pregnant and forced her to eat in the kitchen while gas leaked from an extinguished stove burnerDuring that earlier incident, the woman told investigators that Tian allegedly struck her and threatened her with a knife, the outlet reports.The woman was interviewed by police on July 14, prompting authorities to obtain a warrant for the researcher’s arrest. Tian was released on personal recognizance by a judge, who ordered him to stay away from the alleged victim and have no contact with her, according to records.He is scheduled to return to court on September 16 for a pretrial hearing. The Daily Mail has reached out to Tian, the Brookline Police Department, Harvard Medical School and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center for comment. Tian heads a laboratory at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School researching why some people are susceptible to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and glaucoma. The lab employs researchers from across Harvard’s graduate schools and Harvard College, according to the lab's website.Just last week, The Glaucoma Foundation announced on Facebook that Tian was among its latest research grant recipients for a study examining neuroprotective pathways. The first alleged incident of violence dates back to 2023, months before Tian took up his post at Harvard Medical School. The victim said she was struck and threatened with a knife, according to reports Tian heads a lab at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center researching why some people are susceptible to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s'I am deeply grateful to The Glaucoma Foundation for supporting this work,' he said in a statement shared by the foundation. 'By understanding why certain retinal neurons are more resilient to disease, we hope to identify new therapeutic strategies that can preserve vision beyond currently available pressure-lowering treatments,' he added.According to his lab biography, Tian has more than 20 years of research experience and received his first grant during his postdoctoral work at Boston Children’s Hospital. It is unclear whether he remains employed or whether he continues to oversee his laboratory following his arrest.