Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen

Introduction

Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen are an elderly California couple, both 77, who are not media figures themselves; their names became publicly known through a single family connection — they are the in-laws of Jonathan McKinsey, a New York Times technology executive. In late September 2026, charging documents alleged, the two killed McKinsey in an ambush-style attack, unloading two guns at him in front of children before trying to flee the scene in a car. They were charged with his murder within days. The case is at its beginning: everything described here comes from charging documents and police statements as reported in the press, and nothing has been tested at trial.

Background Information

The public record identifies Zhang and Chen almost entirely through McKinsey, who had worked for the Times since 2023 as its head of engineering for games player experience. Court filings described years of family conflict: Chen visited the household in 2023 and allegedly berated McKinsey’s young son for wearing dresses, calling him a “disgusting queer” and a “pervert,” and, when McKinsey begged her to stop, turned her ire to the New York Times employee, who was transgender and transitioned from female to male in 2010, according to the documents. In a separate incident, the father-in-law allegedly punched McKinsey in the chest after he got a double mastectomy, per the documents.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Allegations. Zhang and Chen have been charged but not tried. The account below comes from charging documents and police statements described in news coverage; a charging document is an accusation, not proof, and nearly every act attributed to the couple is framed in those documents as alleged. Both are presumed innocent unless and until a court rules otherwise, and no claim here has been adjudicated.

According to those documents, Zhang and Chen allegedly took turns shooting McKinsey in the parking lot of the Dublin Sports Grounds this past Saturday, unloading two guns at him while children were present. The pair then allegedly tried to flee in a Honda Civic; witnesses helped police identify and stop the vehicle, and officers said they used those same witnesses to positively identify the couple before arresting and booking them on suspicion of murder. In a later interview, the documents said, Zhang admitted to killing McKinsey, while Chen invoked her Miranda rights and is recorded as giving no account at all.

Public Reaction and Consequences

Attention to the case has centered on its unusual cast — a couple both aged 77 accused of gunning down a New York Times executive — and on the family history the filings describe. A Times spokesman confirmed that McKinsey was the victim of the attack and had worked for the newspaper since 2023. The documented consequences so far are the couple’s arrest and booking on suspicion of murder and the filing of a complaint charging murder with a lying-in-wait special circumstance and a long list of firearm and injury enhancements. The available coverage records no public statement from Zhang or Chen and no comment from defense attorneys; the record does not state whether either has entered a plea or who represents them.

Current Status

As of the charging announcement on September 30, 2026, Zhang and Chen stand charged with McKinsey’s murder, the lying-in-wait special circumstance, and the accompanying firearm and injury allegations, after being found, arrested and booked with the help of witnesses to the shooting. The documents’ claim that Zhang admitted the killing has been reported but not adjudicated; Chen’s invocation of her Miranda rights means the record contains no account from her. The record does not state where the couple is being held, whether they have attorneys of record, when they are next due in court, or how prosecutors will proceed on the special circumstance.

Impact on Their Career/Life

For two 77-year-olds with no previous public profile, the charges are life-defining: each now faces a murder prosecution with a special circumstance and a battery of weapon and injury enhancements, and both names are permanently attached in coverage to the killing. The shooting also capped the destruction of a family already fractured by court filings: McKinsey had been in a divorce and custody fight with his wife, Candice Jang, and had three children under 10 with her — and the two people charged with killing him are their own close relatives. The record does not state either defendant’s circumstances since they were booked.

Sources

• *New York Post, “NYT exec’s in-laws charged after fatal shooting at California park” — source