A New York Times executive who works with the media organization’s games department was killed in northern California over the weekend.
Victim Jonathan McKinsey’s elderly in-laws are suspected of gunning down the 40-year-old director of engineering for the New York Times Games section.
Authorities in the San Francisco bay area town of Dublin say a police sergeant spotted a man lying on the ground in the middle of a parking lot at the Dublin Sports Grounds shortly after 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Dublin Police Service (DPS) cops were beginning their investigation when multiple 911 calls about the apparent shooting were received. Additional officers and medical personnel were dispatched to the scene.
McKinsey, whom authorities said was shot “multiple” times, was pronounced dead at the scene.
“With help from witnesses, within minutes, DPS officers located and detained two suspects who had remained nearby,” police said.
Dublin couple Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen, both 77, were arrested on murder charges and booked into the Santa Rita jail.
A New York Times spokesperson confirmed that McKinsey had been one of its employees since 2023. He was based in Dublin.
It’s unclear what led to the shooting. Police said their investigation is ongoing, though there are no remaining suspects. Circumstances indicate that there’s no threat to the public.
NBC News reported that McKinsey and his wife Candice Jang were involved in a child custody dispute when he was killed. She reportedly filed for a temporary restraining order against him last year alleging domestic violence. Jang filed for divorce in December. The couple has was scheduled to soon meet in court.
Witness Assad Razawi and his daughter Mal Razawi told ABC News they were leaving a nearby market when they heard gunshots. The girl said that her dad saw the suspects “casually walk away from the shooting” together.
McKinsey’s LinkedIn page states that he received his masters in computer science from the University of California, Berkeley in 2015.