Tombstone Secured for Homeless Man Beaten to Death on the Bowery Last Year
Earlier this month marked one year since four homeless men were murdered while asleep on the Bowery. Since the anniversary, a fundraising campaign to secure a tombstone for one of the victims was successful.
Chuen Kwok had fallen on hard times after the passing of his partner. He eventually found refuge living on the streets of Chinatown, and became a fixture outside the Chase bank at Doyers Street and the Bowery. Locals would occasionally donate dollars or dinner to buoy his spirits.
But on the night of October 5, 2019, a 24-year-old homeless man name Randy Santos attacked Kwok and three others with a three-foot piece of scrap metal while they slept. Police charged the attacker with four counts of murder, and one count of attempted murder, for which he pleaded not guilty.
Since Kwok was destitute and without family, Chinatown advocate Karlin Chan signed the paperwork necessary to claim his remains. The Celestial Love Foundation covered all funeral expenses at the time, except the cost of a grave marker. One year later, his organization, the Chinatown Freemasons Athletic Club, organized a GoFundMe fundraiser to help.
The campaign ultimately raised $4,392, nearly half of which covered the tombstone; the other half, Chan confirms, will be donated to the Bowery Mission and the Celestial Love Foundation.
Recent Stories
Cactus Store Resumes Summertime Residency on Essex Street
The Cactus Store returned to the Lower East Side this weekend for its fourth seasonal outing, and first since coronavirus ruined everything. As before, the succulents sellers plant annual roots in the lot at 5 Essex Street. Infrastructure from prior years remains in place. Saturday was opening day. The Cactus Store is a product of […]
Ludlow Street Pizzeria Hits the Open Market
La Margarita Pizza might not have much time left in Hell Square. The Ludlow Street pizzeria is now pitched on the open market. The 800 square-foot store at 268 Ludlow appeared on Craigslist in late-May for $9,000 per month in rent. The listing caps some eight years in business for the Lower East Side pizza […]
Everynight Charley Checkup: Vilray at Rockwood Music Hall
What follows is the beginning of a periodic checkup of the downtown music scene with Everynight Charley Crespo, prolific Editor of The Manhattan Beat. The vocalist, guitarist and songwriter known simply as Vilray (pronounced vill-ree) has an uncanny ability to bridge past and present. Vilray, who does not use his family name, was raised in […]
Mictlan Mexico Brings Orchard Street South of the Border
There is a new taqueria on the Lower East Side. Natalin Perez, who currently operates Haab out in Brooklyn, just lifted the curtains on her new project. The fifteen-table restaurant at 17 Orchard Street, Mictlan Mexico. It takes the reins from the Fat Radish, which spent ten years serving the neighborhood before the pandemic chased […]
The Menace of Summertime Saturday Night on Ludlow Street
With comfort levels of close-quarters partying seemingly back to pre-pandemic norms, Hell Square has rebounded in kind. Neighbors report that any quality-of-life progress gained in this sixteen square-block sector over the last few years completely evaporated. The hordes of hellraisers were out in full force again this past Saturday night. One week after a roving […]
