Local News in Brief : 3 Sentenced to Jail in Car-Theft Case
Three suspected members of a San Fernando Valley car-theft ring were sentenced Monday to varying amounts of time in County Jail for stealing an automobile from a Van Nuys street in November.
Each was also sentenced to three years on probation.
A fourth man, Thanh Nguyen, was ordered to stand trial by Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Alan B. Haber, who refused to accept a plea bargain the defendant reached with prosecutors. The judge said the maximum sentence of one year in County Jail, permitted under the agreement, was too light.
Prosecutors agreed to recommend the one-year sentence for Thanh Nguyen after each of the four men pleaded guilty last month to one count of felony car theft. Each could have received up to three years in prison if convicted at a trial, Deputy Dist. Atty. Robert P. Imerman said.
But on Monday, Haber said that Nguyen, 29, of Canoga Park, deserved two years in prison because he was on probation for a misdemeanor count of receiving stolen property in November when the car theft occurred.
Haber sentenced two other defendants, Thai Nguyen, 19, of Granada Hills, and Tony Nguyen, 25, of Canoga Park, to nine months in County Jail. Hoangkha Duong, 20, of Simi Valley--who authorities said was only marginally involved in the crime--was sentenced to four months in County Jail.
The defendants are not related, Los Angeles police said.
Police allege the four men were part of a ring responsible for stealing about 75 cars, primarily Toyotas, over the past 11 months.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
