Bay Area Radio: Missing San Francisco Radio Host Found Dead

Jeffrey Vandergrift (1969-2023

The San Francisco Medical Examiner on Thursday confirmed the death of 55-year-old Jeffrey Vandergrift, the host of a popular KYLD Wild 94.9 radio morning show who disappeared last month.

The S F Chronicle reports police and firefighters said they pulled human remains from the water near Pier 39 at about 5 p.m. Wednesday evening.

"At this time, we have no evidence of foul play," San Francisco Police Sgt. Adam Lobsinger said in a statement. Law enforcement turned the body, which at that point had not been identified, over to the medical examiner to conduct an investigation. The radio station later acknowledged his death with a somber statement.

JV

"With a heavy heart, we must confirm that the body found near Pier 39 Wednesday afternoon has been identified as our dear friend, family member and colleague, JV," the statement read. "We are devastated to know now that JV is gone. Please keep his wife, Natasha, his family and close friends in your thoughts and prayers. JV, we'll miss you. You are forever a Bay Area icon."

Wednesday's tragic turn of events came roughly three weeks after Vandergrift's wife, Natasha Yi, said she believed her husband would not be coming back. Yi, who is also a host at Wild 94.9, said "personal information" uncovered during the search suggested that Vandergrift would not return.

"I tell you this with incredible pain and sadness in my heart," Yi wrote in a March 1 social media post.

A figure on Bay Area radio airwaves since the 1990s, Vandergrift was known for hosting "The JV Show" weekday mornings from 6 to 10 a.m. He was last seen at about 10 p.m. on Feb. 23, near his home on the 200 block of King Street near Third Street, in San Francisco's Mission Bay neighborhood.