Homeless man charged with murder for allegedly lighting elderly dementia patient on fire — as grim new details emerge

A homeless man is now facing murder charges accused in the gruesome death of an elderly man who was suffering from dementia when he allegedly beat and set him on fire in downtown Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles District Attorney’s office said that 84-year-old Bang Cho was disoriented and living with dementia when he wandered away from his convalescent home on April 19 before being brutally beaten and torched by Lavonta Martel Wilder. 

Officials said the elderly man encountered Wilder, described as a transient, while he was on Sixth Street in downtown LA, between Hope Street and Grand Avenue.

Cho had grabbed one of the bags Wilder was carrying, per the DA. Wilder then allegedly viciously punched and kicked the 84-year-old in the head and body, lifting him over his shoulder and slamming him to the ground — before setting him on fire. The DA said Cho’s condition made him particularly vulnerable.

“The level of violence alleged here is brutal, callous and extreme, and our prosecutors will pursue this case with the urgency it demands to ensure accountability and justice for the victim and his loved ones,” Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman said. 

Wilder has been charged with one count of murder and faces a special allegation of having a prior serious felony.

Video footage obtained by The Post shows the victim being treated with burnt clothing on the ground, while officers set up a perimeter with crime tape.

At least half a dozen police officers secured the scene as three paramedics loaded the elderly man into an ambulance before rushing him to the hospital, where he died the next day.

A witness said off camera that he was on a bus when he saw a man stomping on the victim’s face before setting him on fire. The witness said he got off the bus and went to put out the fire before performing CPR on the victim.

Wilder was later located on Sixth Street and taken into custody, per the DA.

His arraignment is scheduled for May 21. Wilder’s bail has been set at more than $2 million. If convicted as charged, he faces up to life in state prison.

The investigation remains ongoing by the Los Angeles Police Department. The California Post reached out to the DA and LAPD for further comment.