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LA Man Charged With Torture, Murder Of His Mother Visiting From Taiwan

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com)  —  A Los Angeles man was charged Wednesday with the torture and murder of his mother at his downtown apartment over the weekend, the LA County District Attorney announced.

Chen Chao Ming, 21, is being held without bail.

Ming is charged with one count of capital murder with the special circumstance that the murder involved torture. He also is charged with one count of animal cruelty. He allegedly threw his cat out a window.

Responding to a 911 call about 8 p.m. Sunday, LAPD officers found the body of Yi Tung Weng, 48, Ming's mother, inside his apartment in the 1300 block of Figueroa Avenue. Weng, who was visiting from Taiwan, died of asphyxiation, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors will decide at a later date whether to seek the death penalty.

The Family Violence Division is prosecuting the case.

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