Local News in Brief : Man Given 16 Months in Prison for Car Theft

The last of four suspected members of a car theft ring, which plagued the San Fernando Valley over an 11-month period, pleaded guilty Tuesday to one felony count of auto theft.

Thanh Nguyen, 30, of Canoga Park was sentenced by Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Alan B. Haber to 16 months in state prison as part of a plea bargain with prosecutors.

Nguyen could have received a maximum sentence of three years if convicted of the charge at a trial, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Ann M. Korban.

Under an agreement with prosecutors, all four men pleaded guilty in March to one count of felony car theft for stealing an automobile from a Van Nuys street in November.

But Haber in April refused to accept Nguyen’s plea. Haber said the maximum sentence of one year in County Jail permitted under the agreement was too light.

Haber said Nguyen deserved two years in prison because he was on probation for a misdemeanor count of receiving stolen property at the time of his arrest for the car theft.

Two of the others--Thai Nguyen, 19, of Granada Hills, and Tony Nguyen, 25, of Canoga Park--were sentenced to nine months in County Jail. Hoangkha Duong, 20, of Simi Valley--who authorities said was only marginally involved--was sentenced to four months in County Jail.

The defendants are not related.

Los Angeles police said the four men were part of a ring responsible for stealing about 75 cars, primarily Toyotas, between December, 1986, and last November.

With credit for work and good behavior, Thanh Nguyen could be released from prison within eight months, Korban said.