Police Offer $25,000 Reward in 2001 Slaying of Man, 28

Los Angeles police offered a $25,000 reward Wednesday for information related to the unsolved case of a Baldwin Hills construction worker killed in plain view of at least one witness.

Charles Henry Yarbrough Jr., 28, was killed Aug. 20, 2001, in the 4000 block of Santo Tomas Drive in Baldwin Hills by a man with a handgun. The killer ran away. Shortly before the slaying, Yarbrough had received a call on his cellular phone and walked outside to meet a woman on the street, said LAPD Det. Karen Jackson-Williams.

The two were talking when the killer approached Yarbrough, argued with him, and shot him, according to police. The killer and the woman ran, and Yarbrough died at the scene.

At a news conference Wednesday at LAPD’s Southwest station, Yarbrough’s mother, Anita McKiry, appealed for help to find the killer.

“He was my only child,” she said. “And I know somebody knows who killed him. I hope with this reward they will come forward. I don’t understand how they can sleep.”

Yarbrough was a graduate of Dorsey High School, his mother said. He was well-known in the neighborhood, and very talkative. “I used to tell him that if a snake talked to him, he would talk to it,” she said.

Jackson-Williams said police are hoping someone will have enough courage to offer evidence.

Those with information may call the LAPD at (213) 485-2417 or, after hours, (877) 529-3855.