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“The Yale community is grieving right now. This is the loss of an extraordinary young man. He was committed to applying his talents to improving the world. He wanted to use his education and experiences to make a positive difference in the world through environmental stewardship . ... Kevin gave so much to this community, and he had more to give. So we remember him; we remember him fondly. We feel for his family, his fiancee.”

Yale President Peter Salovey

NEW HAVEN — A Yale graduate student fatally wounded Saturday may have been targeted for death, instead of being killed in a random act, police said Monday.

Kevin Jiang, 26, who studied at the Yale School of the Environment and lived in West Haven, was shot to death on Lawrence Street between Nicoll Street and Nash Street Saturday night.

At a press conference, Police Chief Otoniel Reyes said Jiang was familiar in the East Rock neighborhood, where he was killed.

He declined to discuss the matter in detail, noting the ongoing investigation.

“We are looking into whether or not Mr. Jiang was targeted. We have developed information that the incident may not have been a random act, that he was in effect targeted,” Reyes said. “This was not, sort of, a drive-by. It seems like it was much more up-close.”

The department does not believe the community is at risk of further violence connected to the incident, Reyes said.

In response to the suggestion that the killing may have been an incident of road rage, Reyes said the department is exploring all angles. It is too early to speculate about the motive for the slaying, he said.

Reyes said the department is doing “everything we possibly can” to arrest Jiang’s killer, as well as the individuals who shot at the home of New Haven Assistant Superintendent of Schools Paul Whyte, and to prevent further shootings.

The department has seized 16 guns this year, he said, noting its commitment to curbing violence.

“There is no one thing that I can tell you that is contributing to the violence in New Haven, but we are doing everything we can to make sure the city’s safe,” said Reyes.

Reyes asked the public to supply any information they have about the incident, no matter how seemingly insignificant.

Chief Medical Examiner James Gill announced Jiang’s manner and cause of death Monday. He said Jiang suffered gunshot wounds to the head, neck, torso and extremities.

Jiang’s death was the city’s sixth homicide of the year.

Yale Police Chief Ronnell Higgins said the Yale Police Department had offered “the services of our entire investigative unit” to help New Haven police with the case. Jiang’s death was “significant in many ways,” he said.

Reyes stressed the importance of the department’s collaboration with Yale, saying their partnership “could not be closer,” as well as with federal partners. The department will continue to leverage those relationships, as well as its ties to the community, he said.

“Right now, we’re in a rough patch,” said Reyes. “The city is a safe city. We’re experiencing a spate of violence, but I have full confidence we’re going to turn this around.”

Mayor Justin Elicker and Yale President Peter Salovey expressed dismay and offered condolences to Jiang’s family at Monday’s press conference. A man outside Jiang’s West Haven home said the family did not want to comment at this time.

“The Yale community is grieving right now. This is the loss of an extraordinary young man. He was committed to applying his talents to improving the world,” said Salovey. “He wanted to use his education and experiences to make a positive difference in the world through environmental stewardship . ... Kevin gave so much to this community, and he had more to give. So we remember him; we remember him fondly. We feel for his family, his fiancee.”

Elicker said it was a “very, very challenging time for our community,” noting that violence had increased in New Haven, as well as in cities across the country, in the past year.

“I want to underscore that this is a top priority, addressing the violence in the city,” said Elicker. “This (period of violence) is a tragedy for our city. We have to do everything possible to make sure we’re doing everything we can to keep people safe and keep people alive.”

Salovey said Jiang’s death illustrated the ways in which we are all connected in this world, and reiterated Yale’s commitment to the community.

Jiang was a volunteer at Trinity Baptist Church, where he was expecting to be married in the near future, Co-Pastor Greg Hendrickson said on Facebook.

“As a community, we are grieving deeply right now. But Kevin lived by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Above all he looked forward to Jesus’ promise of the resurrection from the dead,” said Hendrickson. “Though his earthly life was cut short, he used the time that he had on earth to the fullest. His example inspires us to do the same.”

Jiang originally was from Chicago, was an Army veteran and a graduate of the University of Washington, according to Yale University.

His fiancee, Zion Perry, described Jiang as “a gift from God” in a message to the Yale Daily News.

“Kevin was and is a gift from God,” Perry said in an email to the YDN, it reported online. “He was a true and righteous man after God’s own heart. Life is so precious and short. My only hope is that he is with his Heavenly Father now in perfect peace.”

Jiang said in a Jan. 30 Facebook post that he had proposed to Perry and she said “yes,” and noted his powerful faith and the impact she had made on his life.

The Rev. Boise Kimber, at a separate press event Monday, called for the city to develop a comprehensive strategy for addressing violence in New Haven and expand its partnerships in addressing crime. He called on the community to aid police and noted his support for further investing in the department.

The recent violence had sparked fear among residents, he said. cause behind each of the homicides in the city is important, he said.

“This is an urgent call for this administration to pull together a major group to deal with violence in our community,” said Kimber.