Elderly Couple Accused of Taking Turns Shooting Son-in-Law, a New York Times Games Executive, at Dublin Park

An elderly Bay Area couple is accused of shooting and killing their son-in-law in broad daylight in the parking lot of a busy Dublin community park, and prosecutors say they lay in wait to do it.

Around 3:08 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26, a Dublin police sergeant driving past the Dublin Sports Grounds, about a block from the police department, spotted a man lying in the parking lot and stopped to investigate as 911 calls began coming in about a shooting. The victim, 40-year-old Jonathan McKinsey, director of engineering for New York Times Games, had been shot multiple times and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Witnesses told police a man and a woman, both wearing masks, took turns shooting McKinsey. With help from those witnesses, officers detained 77-year-olds Shouyong Zhang and Shili Chen nearby. The married couple are McKinsey's parents-in-law. Both were booked into Santa Rita Jail on suspicion of murder.

According to court documents, surveillance video shows the couple acting together in the shooting, and three witnesses identified them as the shooters. Investigators say Zhang later admitted to shooting McKinsey and told them a second gun found in the couple's car was the one he used. Police recovered two firearms.

The Alameda County District Attorney's Office has since charged Zhang and Chen with murder with a special circumstance of lying in wait, along with additional charges. Both are being held without bail. Chen's attorney has said he plans to enter a not-guilty plea on her behalf and has described her as a loving grandmother. Zhang has separate counsel.

Court records show the shooting came in the middle of a bitter family split. McKinsey had been charged in October 2025 with two misdemeanor counts, child endangerment and corporal injury to a child, and pleaded not guilty. His estranged wife, the couple's daughter, then filed a restraining order against him, alleging years of abuse. McKinsey later filed his own restraining order against her, alleging mistreatment by her and her parents, and moved for divorce. Chen's attorney has said McKinsey had been violent and abusive.

Police say there's no ongoing threat to the public, and the investigation continues.

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.