GoFundMe Raises Over $35K for Elderly Cambodian Man After SUV Burned in Oakland

Ryan General
·1 min read

A Cambodian senior, whose car was destroyed by unknown assailants in Oakland, Calif., in March, recently received a new car after a longtime friend raised over $35,000 for him through GoFundMe.

Engulfed in flames: Nhep Chheng and his Chinese neighbor, who are in their 70s and 60s, respectively, found their vehicles on fire at around 3:30 a.m. on March 27, NextShark previously reported.

  • Chheng’s two-year-old white Toyota SUV was parked directly in front of his neighbor's vehicle. Both cars were heavily damaged and charred by the flames.

  • Being the only Asian households along the road, Chheng and his neighbor believe they were targeted due to their race.

  • The Oakland Fire Department said there wasn’t any evidence to confirm foul play.


A community responds: Larry Giang, a longtime friend of Chheng, helped set up a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds for buying a new vehicle and covering other expenses.



  • Giang, who has known Chheng for seven years, revealed that the victim traveled from Cambodia to the United States over 20 years ago “with nothing and started from scratch.”

  • The campaign has surpassed its $30,000 goal, raising a total of $35,329 as of this writing.

  • Reporter Dion Lim shared on Twitter that Chheng has used part of this amount to purchase a new car.


Featured Image via Dion Lim

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