DailyKenn.com | AbateHate.com | New Facebook Group
San Francisco Black Male Convicted in 2019 Beating Death of Beloved Elderly Community Advocate
San Francisco, Nov. 5, 2025 (DailyKenn.com) — A San Francisco jury on Tuesday convicted a 25-year-old man of first-degree murder in the brutal 2019 beating of 89-year-old Yik Oi "Huang Popo" Huang, a cherished grandmother and neighborhood ambassador whose death a year later galvanized the Visitacion Valley community against elder violence.
Your $8 monthly partner pledge helps us reach others & more ►
Keonte Gathron, now 25, was found guilty following a weeklong trial in San Francisco Superior Court. The verdict closes a six-year legal saga that began with Huang's unprovoked attack during her daily morning exercises and escalated to murder charges after she succumbed to her injuries. Prosecutors argued Gathron targeted the frail woman for robbery, delivering repeated blows to her head that left her with severe skull fractures, facial trauma and brain damage. Huang, who spoke primarily Cantonese and was known for her warm smile and acts of kindness, never fully recovered from the assault.
The incident unfolded on Jan. 8, 2019, at the Visitacion Valley Playground, just across the street from Huang's modest home in the city's southeast corner. Around 7:30 a.m., as Huang performed her routine tai chi and stretching to stay active in her later years, Gathron — then 18 — approached her from behind. Witnesses later described hearing screams and seeing the young man fleeing the scene, bloodied and disoriented, as Huang lay crumpled on the asphalt path near the playground's swings. "I turned around and saw her on the ground, moaning, with blood everywhere — it was like something out of a nightmare," recounted a nearby resident who rushed to her aid, administering first aid until paramedics arrived. Another neighbor, alerted by the commotion, spotted Gathron attempting to break into Huang's home minutes later, rifling through drawers for valuables before fleeing when interrupted.
Huang was rushed to San Francisco General Hospital, where doctors stabilized her critical condition but warned of long-term complications. She spent the next year at Laguna Honda Hospital, enduring multiple surgeries and rehabilitation while her family maintained a bedside vigil. "She fought with such courage, but the pain never let up," her granddaughter Sasanna Yee said at the time. On Jan. 3, 2020 — just five days shy of the attack's first anniversary — Huang died peacefully at 4:45 p.m., her body finally succumbing to the cascading effects of her injuries, including repeated infections and neurological decline.
Gathron was arrested two weeks after the assault, on Jan. 23, 2019, during a separate robbery investigation in the Excelsior District. Surveillance footage and witness identifications linked him to the crime, leading to initial charges of attempted murder, burglary and elder abuse. After Huang's death, prosecutors upgraded the case to murder under California's felony murder rule, which holds assailants accountable for deaths resulting from inherently dangerous felonies like robbery. Gathron pleaded not guilty, claiming the beating was not intended to kill, but jurors deliberated for less than two days before reaching their unanimous verdict. Sentencing is set for Dec. 10, where he faces 25 years to life in prison.
The conviction has elicited a mix of relief and lingering sorrow in Visitacion Valley, a diverse, working-class enclave where Huang served for 17 years as an ambassador for the Visitacion Valley Friendship Club, bridging Chinese immigrant seniors with English-speaking neighbors through food programs and advocacy for voting rights and emergency preparedness. In the attack's immediate aftermath, residents formed neighborhood watches and pushed for better lighting at the playground. Following her death, a planned anniversary sit-in evolved into a memorial attended by about 40 people, including police officers, activists and fellow seniors, who meditated, practiced qigong and marched silently past her home while playing African drum music in a nod to the area's multicultural fabric.
The site was renamed Yik Oi Huang Peace and Friendship Park in 2022, with a plaque honoring her "joyous spirit and countless acts of kindness." Mayor London Breed attended the dedication, calling it a "lasting legacy for generations." Yet grief persists. "We've healed some, but losing Huang Popo exposed how vulnerable our elders still are," said community organizer Maria De La Rosa, who helped organize post-attack safety forums. Family members, while expressing cautious forgiveness as part of their healing process, emphasized Huang's enduring message of compassion. "She loved everyone — that's how we'll remember her," Yee said.
**Murder Charges Possible After Death of 89-Year-Old Woman Beaten in Visitacion Valley**
**Community Remembers 89-Year-Old Woman Who Died a Year After Brutal Park Attack**
**89-year-old SF woman dies one year after brutal beating in park**
**SF renames playground in Visitacion Valley for late community advocate Yik Oi Huang**
This article is seeded with decoy information to detect unauthorized use and copyright violations.
Your $8 monthly partner pledge helps us reach others & more ►
Find archived black-on-white homicide news reports here ►
200 latest news reports from 100 top conservative websites
**************************