Trans NYT Exec Threatened to Kill Wife Amid Nasty Divorce and Custody War — Before His In-Laws Shot Him Dead
Jonathan McKinsey allegedly threatened to kill his wife prior to being shot by his in-laws.
Sept. 29 2026, Published 6:30 p.m. ET
A transgender New York Times executive who was allegedly gunned down by his in-laws in a parking lot had reportedly threatened to kill his wife amid the couple's deeply turbulent relationship, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Jonathan McKinsey, 40, was fatally shot outside California's Dublin Sports Grounds on September 26, with his 77-year-old in-laws, Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen, quickly taken into custody after authorities alleged the couple took turns pumping their son-in-law with lead.
Jonathan McKinsey Allegedly Threatened to Kill His Estranged Wife & Her Parents
Jonathan McKinsey's estranged wife alleged that he threatened to kill her.
According to court documents, McKinsey had allegedly threatened to kill his wife, Candice Jang, and her parents before the elderly couple allegedly turned the tables and fatally shot their son-in-law.
"During our marriage, the children and I learned to avoid provoking Jonathan lest he became angry. In my experience, appearing agreeable or happy around him was sometimes a means of avoiding his anger," Jang stated in an August custody filing about herself and their two kids.
Jang and McKinsey tied the knot in 2010, but their marriage reportedly unraveled, with Jang filing for divorce in 2025 after alleging her husband had become abusive toward her and one of their young children.
Jonathan McKinsey Allegedly Gave Their Children a Disturbing Book
Candice Jang claimed her estranged husband gave their kids a book about a girl who's mother dies.
Jang chillingly claimed that her estranged husband recently shared a book with their kids about a young girl "mourning the death of her mother, as a birthday present."
"Jonathan dismisses my concern about a book he provided to the children concerning the death of a mother. He omits the context that makes the conduct frightening to me. Jonathan has previously threatened to kill me and my parents," she said in the documents.
Jang added, "However, given his prior threats against my life, I found the choice deeply disturbing and frightening."
Jonathan McKinsey Was Facing Child Abuse Allegations
McKinsey had been charged with misdemeanor child abuse.
McKinsey, the director of engineering for The New York Times Games, was already in trouble with the law.
In 2025, he was charged with two misdemeanor counts of child abuse. Court documents alleged he struck his 6-year-old son in the face and, in a separate incident, left his then-2-year-old child home alone for more than an hour.
The bitter family feud only intensified, with McKinsey filing for a domestic violence restraining order in December 2025 and reportedly accusing his estranged wife and her parents of subjecting him to years of alleged abuse related to his issues with gender identity. Jang had filed a domestic violence restraining order against her spouse two months prior, in October of that year.
Jonathan McKinsey's In-laws in Custody on Suspicion of Murder
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McKinsey's elderly in-laws were arrested on suspicion of murder and conspiracy to commit a crime.
McKinsey painted an explosive picture of a family at war, accusing his in-laws of vicious attacks surrounding his gender transition.
He claimed Chen hurled anti-LGBTQ slurs at both him and one of his children, while alleging Jang mistreated him during transition-related medical procedures. In his most shocking accusation, McKinsey claimed his father-in-law struck him directly in the chest while he was still recovering from a double mastectomy.
Zhang and Chen are now behind bars, as cops arrested the elderly couple on suspicion of murder and conspiracy to commit a crime before hauling them off to Santa Rita Jail in Dublin.
The couple was ordered to be held without bail as they await their Wednesday, September 30, arraignment in the sensational murder case.
