By: Macy Dennon
Editor-in-Chief
Police arrested 56-year-old Los Gatos resident John Maxey Yeageron Jan. 11 on suspicion of domestic violence. However, after further investigation the case shifted to the possible murder of his 40-year-old wife, YingYing Yu. The original arrest warrant covered domestic violence, but after further investigation, the Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Police Department found evidence of possible murder. On Jan. 13, police found human remains on the side of Summit Road.
The couple had a rocky history. Yu filed for divorce in 2020, but never followed through to confirm the split, causing the case to remain open until her alleged murder. After Yu failed to show up for work following the new year, her employer tried to contact her on multiple occasions, to no avail. Her employer officially reported her missing on Jan. 8. Investigators then started their search for Yu. After contacting and investigating Yeager, the information the police knew did not line up with the story he told the police, leading investigators to suspect foul play.
After an incident report was filed on Dec. 31, 2023, police took Yeager into custody. The report consisted of surveillance footage where Yeager allegedly threatened to beat his wife to death. In a neighbor’s security camera footage, Yu ran out the house and yelled for help. Yeager then grabbed his wife to stop her from moving. Yu repeatedly asked her husband if he was planning on beating her to death. Eventually, the couple made their way back into the house. The police’s main worry at the time of the arrest was the safety of the couple’s children.
Allegedly, two days after police took him into custody for domestic abuse, Yeager strangled his wife with a rope. He then reportedly told the police where they could find the remains.
The remains found on the side of Summit Road have yet to be identified by the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner, but the police did confirm that Yeager was in the area earlier in the year. He remains in custody and will face arraignment in San Jose.
As of now, the Santa Clara Public Defender’s Office and the medical examiner’s office have not talked to any news outlets about this incident.
As this investigation is still ongoing, the Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Police Department urges citizens to contact Detective Mike Birley at 408-827-3219 or at police@losgatosca.gov if they know any information with regards to this case.
(Sources: CBS, HuffPost, SFGATE, People, KTVU, Los Gatan)