Garden Grove : Suspect in Restaurant Slaying is Arrested

A suspected gang member who allegedly shot a businessman to death because of a dirty look was arrested Friday on suspicion of first-degree murder, police said.

Thanh Hoang Nguyen, 23, was being held in the April 25 shooting death of insurance salesman Tu Van Nguyen, 33, in a restaurant near Little Saigon, said Garden Grove Police Lt. Chuck Gibbs, head of the detective bureau.

Neither the victim nor the assailant knew each other before the chance encounter at adjoining tables in the Phu Khanh Restaurant, 10557 Bolsa Ave.

“Tu Van Nguyen apparently made the mistake of ‘staring’ at one of the individuals in the other group,” said Gibbs. “Because of this, the victim was physically beaten by several members of the group. After the beating, the victim tried to flee the restaurant, but was shot before he could get away.”

He died of a gunshot wound to the torso.

Gibbs said investigators are certain that the stare triggered the killing but said he could not explain why the reaction was so violent.

The stare “might have meant anything, it might have meant a challenge,” Gibbs said. “Who knows. It could be anything. He just looked at them wrong.”

Thanh Hoang Nguyen was arrested at his home on Donegal Lane by police detectives and a SWAT team. Another suspected gang member found at the home was taken into custody for an alleged parole violation.