Man Charged with Murdering Dementia Patient

A 38-year-old man named Lavanta Martell Wilder faces murder charges after allegedly killing

an 84-year-old dementia patient in.

Downtown Los Angeles On April 19th, Bong Cho wandered away from

his convalescent home, got disoriented, and grabbed Wilder's bag on 6th street, leading

to a savage, beating where Wilder punched, kicked, slammed him down, and set him on fire.

Cho died the next day in the hospital from his injuries, highlighting how vulnerable folks

with dementia can be out there alone.

Wilder got arrested right nearby, and is locked up on $2,000,000,000 bail, with prosecutors

pushing for life in prison, plus a prior, felony allegation.

The district attorney's arson unit is handling it, LAPD keeps digging into details, and Wilder's

arraignment hits May 21st Justice moving.

Steady on this heartbreaking case, local news powered by AI.

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