Yiran Fan was 30 and a fourth-year Ph.D. student at the University of Chicago when he was shot and killed on January 9, 2021, in Chicago. He was enrolled in the joint doctoral program of the Booth School of Business and the Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics, after earlier studying financial mathematics at Chicago and completing a master’s in financial engineering at the University of Cambridge. Peers and professors remembered him for his intellect, dedication and kindness.

Fan was killed during a shooting rampage that began on Chicago’s South Side and ended in Evanston. The attacker, Jason Nightengale, killed three people in the spree and wounded four others before he was killed in a shootout with Evanston police. The University of Chicago held a candlelight vigil and established a memorial fund in Fan’s name to support students in the joint program.

If anyone knew Yiran Fan or has information about him or that day, please share what you can.