Los Angeles Times breaking news reporter Gregory Yee has died at the age of 33, the newspaper reported Thursday.
Yee died Wednesday at the Hollywood bungalow where he lived, apparently from complications from a respiratory issue, according to The Times.
Yee was born and raised in the Los Angeles area and attended UC Irvine, where he was editor-in-chief of the student newspaper.
After his 2012 graduation, Yee worked at a New Mexico newspaper, covered crime for the Long Beach Press-Telegram and criminal justice for the Post and Courier in Charleston, South Carolina.
Yee started working for The Times from home in the summer of 2021, during the coronavirus pandemic, as a night reporter on the Metro staff, and most recently was one of 18 reporters on the Fast Break desk, according to The Times.
Erika Hayasaki, an associate professor of literary journalism at UC Irvine, call Yee’s death devastating.
“Gregory was a standout in the (UC Irvine Literary Journalism Program) and at (the Los Angeles Times),” Hayasaki tweeted. “Beloved and admired by his peers and professors. A heartbreaking loss, far too young.”
Yee is survived by his parents and two sisters.