At about 3 p.m. on Saturday, Jonathan McKinsey, 40, the New York Times’ head of games engineering, was shot dead in the parking lot of Dublin Sports Grounds in California. Two masked assailants, Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen, both 77, approached him and alternated firing, according to the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office. McKinsey collapsed before a passing officer could intervene.
McKinsey, who joined the Times in 2023, had previously worked as an engineering manager at Splunk and studied at UC Berkeley. He is married to Candice Jang, the daughter of the two attackers, and police say a woman alleged he had struck her six‑year‑old son and had a history of domestic violence in 2018. The woman told investigators that deputies had found a two‑year‑old unattended in McKinsey’s home when he left for shopping.
Both assailants were taken to Alameda County’s Santa Rita Jail on suspicion of murder, felony conspiracy, child endangerment and firing a gun dangerously. The sheriff’s office said the men face multiple charges and that a probable‑cause declaration was filed. The case is now pending in the Alameda County court system.
The NYT confirmed the shooting to the NY Post and said no further details were released. The incident has prompted calls for a review of domestic‑violence allegations within the newsroom. A court hearing is scheduled for July 12, when the defendants will enter their pleas.