Brutal attack on Chinatown seniors caught on video

Suspects assaulted three elderly men in an attempted robbery.



In San Francisco, police are searching for suspects who were caught on video assaulting a group of elderly men in a violent attempted robbery on Saturday night.

Brutal attack on 3 men caught on camera in SF's Chinatown

Video of the attack shows a group of seniors walking near Portsmouth Square in Chinatown when they're approached by two suspects who begin throwing punches at them. One victim is hit directly in the face and falls down, appearing to be out cold.

The video was circulated widely on social media.

When Asian Parents Retire... and Start Cosplaying

Steven and Millie Tani are having a blast dressing up as their favorite pop culture characters.



They say that the couple that cosplays together stays together. Meet Steven and Millie Tani, a retired couple that spends their leisure time getting dressed up as their favorite pop culture characters.

The couple, who have been married for 27 years, caught the cosplaying bug three years ago when they needed costumes for Halloween event at Disneyland. They went as Carl and Ellie from Pixar's Up.

Since then, the Southern California couple has suited up as everything from Captain America and Agent Carter to Han Solo and Princess Leia, traveling to events and conventions around the state.

Their daughter, a veteran cosplayer herself, suggested they document their newfound hobby on social media. You can view fun photos of Steven and Millie's costume exploits on CosplayParents.

103-year-old woman becomes U.S. citizen

Hong Inh was the oldest among 10,000 new Americans at Tuesday's naturalization ceremony in Los Angeles.



This week, a 103-year-old woman from Cambodia joined thousands of flag-waving folks at the Los Angeles Convention Center to take the oath of allegiance and become our nation's newest Americans.

Hong Inh, who survived years of war and violence under the Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s, came to the United States when she 97 years old to join a daughter and other relatives.

She was the oldest of more than 10,000 people at Tuesday's naturalization ceremony. She was joined by three generations of her family, from her 80-year-old daughter to her 13-year-old great-granddaughter.

More here: 103-Year-Old Woman from Cambodia Becomes U.S. Citizen

92-year-old former internee receives high school diploma

72 years after internment, Mary Matsuda Gruenewald finally graduates from Vashon High School.


(Photo Credit: Aileen Imperial/KCTS 9)
Over the weekend in Washington, a 92-year-old Japanese American woman received her high school diploma -- with honors -- alongside the graduating class of Vashon High School -- 74 years after her education at the school was interrupted when her family was forced into an internment camp during World War II.

92-year-old woman receives high school diploma 74 years after internment

Mary Matsuda Gruenewald was 17, in the middle of her junior year in 1942, when her family was forcibly removed from Vashon Island and incarcerated in a dusty California concentration camp, like thousands of other innocent Japanese Americans on the west coast. She was a good student, a member of the honor society and served on the student council. But she missed the opportunity to graduate with her classmates.

On Saturday, she finally graduated from Vashon High School. Receiving a standing ovation, she was presented with her diploma, along with a copy of the 1943 yearbook and the 2017 yearbook signed by students and staff. The ceremony was streamed live on YouTube (Gruenewald is first acknowledged in the principal's remarks at the 51:46 mark, and receives her diploma at 1:48:02):

This Chinatown grandma is one of 'The Forgotten Ones'

Short documentary profiles elderly living alone in Manhattan's Chinatown.



Every grandma in Chinatown, wheeling her cart and clutching her plastic bags, has a story. Mantai Chow's short documentary The Forgotten Ones, recently showcased by the The Atlantic, profiles elderly people who've lived in New York City for decades, but who are struggling as they grow older alone.

80-year-old King-Sim Ng, whose husband passed away years ago, and whose children have moved out. She has been living alone in Manhattan's Chinatown for 15 years. The heartbreaking film follows Ng through her regular routine as she digs through discarded food and finds moments of companionship with fellow seniors.

Police seek help identifying elderly Chinese woman

She only speaks Cantonese and was found wandering a residential neighborhood in Redondo Beach.



UPDATE: The elderly woman found wandering a residential neighborhood in Redondo Beach has been reunited with her family. After taking her to the hospital, staff with the Department of Adult Protective Services were able to locate the woman’s family and arrange for her to be picked up.

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Heads up, Southern California... In Redondo Beach, police are asking for the public's assistance identifying an elderly Chinese woman who was found wandering a residential neighborhood on Thursday morning.

Redondo Beach police seek family of elderly woman found wandering neighborhood

An elderly adult Chinese woman was found around 6:50 AM on Miramar Drive in Redondo Beach. She speaks only Cantonese and is between 80 and 90 years old, 4-foot-10-inches and between 80 and 90 pounds. She is wearing a tan shirt with light stripes, black pants and grey shoes.

This woman needs your help.

Police seek help identifying an elderly woman found wandering inside a Brooklyn store.



In New York, police are asking for the public's help identifying an elderly Asian woman who was found wandering inside of a downtown Brooklyn Sephora store on Saturday afternoon.

Police Seek Identity Of Woman Found Wandering In Brooklyn Municipal Building

Police say the woman was found around non wandering inside the Sephora store at 201 Joralemon St. Through an interpreter, it was determined that the woman's speech was incoherent and she could not provide a name or contact information for anyone she knew.

Check the Senior Street Style of 'Chinatown Pretty'

Blog and photo exhibition inspired by the unique elder fashion of San Francisco's Chinatown.



Chinatown Pretty is a fashion and storytelling project chronicling the street style of seniors living (and grocery shopping) in San Francisco's Chinatown. Because dude, let's face it, these elders have got some serious style.

"We're here to celebrate the ingenuity, flair, and beauty of San Francisco Chinatown and its longtime residents," the blog declares. "Chinatown Pretty brings us joy and we hope it will put a smile on your face too."

Photographer Andria Lo and writer Valerie Luu, "two friends who love dim sum and chasing after pretty po-pos," say they were inspired to create the project while Luu was living in Chinatown, when she would see silver-haired seniors looking hella fresh, rocking their own unique fashions.

89-year-old Sacramento man arrested for killing wife

Masaharu Ono is accused of murdering 83-year-old Hiroko Ono.



Damn. This is one of those stories I wish I hadn't heard about, because it just bums me the hell out. Last week in Sacramento, an 89-year-old man was arrested in connection with the murder of his 83-year-old wife.

89-year-old man arrested in wife's death

Masaharu Ono was jailed Friday in Sacramento County on a single count of murder after his wife Hiroko Ono was found dead in their home. While Ono claimed to authorities that he found her dead, coroner's officials determined that she had injuries that contributed to her death and were suspicious.

According to the Sacramento Bee, Ono used a "sharp instrument" to kill his wife.

MISSING: 82-year-old Sa K. Lee, last seen Saturday night

Mr. Lee, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease, disappeared from his Laguna Woods home.


In Southern California, police and loved ones are asking for the public's help in locating an 82-year-old Korean American man with Alzheimer's disease who was reported missing Saturday night.

Laguna Woods Family Pleads for Help Finding Missing Man With Alzheimer's

Sa K. Lee was last seen at the home he shares with his wife and son in the gated retirement community of Leisure World in Laguna Woods at about 10:00pm on Saturday. While his wife was taking a shower, Mr. Lee deactivated the door alarm and walked out the house, and hasn't been seen since.

According to police, Mr. Lee has medical and memory problems and has wandered away in the past.

Beware, Los Angeles. The "Chinese Blessing" scam is back.

Con artists are targeting superstitious elderly Chinese women.



Asians of Southern California, take note. An old scam has recently resurfaced in Los Angeles. Con artists are back targeting superstitious elderly women and duping them out of valuables with the old "Chinese blessing" scam.

Old con resurfaces in LA; how the 'Chinese blessing' scam targets the elderly

The con tends to pop up in various Chinatowns around the country, from New York to San Francisco to Honolulu. The scam has apparently made its way back to Los Angeles. According to the LAPD's Asian Crime Unit, an elderly Chinatown resident was recently swindled out of $75,000 in cash and jewelry.

The "Chinese blessing" scam usually starts out with two women approaching their target on the street, then introducing her to a third woman who claims to have spiritual gifts. She offers protection from evil spirits if the target brings over her valuables to pray over. You can probably guess what happens next.

Suspects arrested in beating and robbery of elderly couple

John Lee and Donna Demitro are accused of viciously attacking a 90-year-old couple



Following up on this heinous crime out of the Bay Area... In Oakland, two suspects are in custody in connection with the brutal beating and home invasion robbery of an elderly El Cerrito couple last month.

Couple held in attack on elderly El Cerrito couple

30-year-old John Lee and his girlfriend, 24-year-old Donna Demitro were arrested Tuesday by the U.S. Marshals Service Task Force. They are accused of talking their way into the home of Jaime and Paz Nagal -- both 90 -- viciously attacking them, tying them up, and robbing their belongings.

The victims first encountered Lee and Demitro the day before the assault, talking their way into the Nagal's home with a conversation about their flowers. After the suspects left, the couple realized a wallet, cash and jewelry were missing from a bedroom. When the suspects returned the following day, things turned violent:

90-year-old couple brutally beaten in home invasion

Suspects tricked elderly couple into letting them inside their El Cerrito home



What the hell? News out of the Bay Area about another brutal assault and robbery on elderly Asians... Last week in El Cerrito, a couple in their 90s were violently beaten and bound by two home invasion robbers.

Elderly Couple Beaten, Robbed Inside Their Home in El Cerrito

The two assailants -- one male, one female -- tricked Jaime and Paz Nagal, both 90, into letting them into their home twice in two days, first chatting them up outside about their flowers, then attacking and robbing the couple when they returned the following day. Both victims were severely beaten and tied up while the suspects made off with their belongings.

Peace brokered between McDonald's and Elderly Koreans

Flushing restaurant reaches agreement limiting number of hours customers can sit



It seems a little silly that a congresswoman and state legislators had to get involved to settle the much-publicized dispute between a McDonald's location in Queens and a group of elderly Korean patrons who refused to leave in a timely fashion. But that's what it took. They've apparently made peace.

Elderly Patrons End Dispute With a McDonald's in Queens

The Flushing fast food restaurant has become a regular gathering place for local Korean seniors who take up seats and stay for hours, much to the management's dismay. The situation has escalated in recent months, and police have actually been called in to remove customers. And now the community has gotten involved.

But it seems they've reached an agreement. Management has agreed to ease the 20-minute seating limit during off-peak hours and post signs stating the policy in Korean and Mandarin. In turn, the seniors will give up their seats during the busy hours if other diners are looking for a place to sit. Boycott averted.

McDonald's versus the Elderly Sitting Koreans

Flushing McDonald's is the happening hot spot for Korean seniors, much to restaurant's dismay



A McDonald's in Queens has become the unlikely site of a cranky conflict between the fast food restaurant and a group of elderly Korean patrons. The McDonald's, located in Flushing, says the group drives away business by sitting for hours. Seems like a silly thing to quarrel about, but the New York Times has taken notice:

Fighting a McDonald’s in Queens for the Right to Sit. And Sit. And Sit.

Whether the restaurant likes it or not, that McDonald's location has become a regular gathering place for local Korean seniors -- and a growing problem for the restaurant, which says the patrons who colonize the seats on a daily basis are quashing business, taking up tables for hours. The group, however, says they are paying customers who are entitled to take their time.

The situation has reportedly escalated in recent months. Harsh words exchanged, coffee spilled, and cops called to the scene. Doesn't this McDonald's know that you don't mess with elderly Koreans?