Driver Stops in Heavy Traffic, Kills Self

A 25-year-old Garden Grove man pulled his car into the center lane of Bolsa Avenue during heavy afternoon traffic Saturday, with paper signs carefully placed on the outside of the vehicle, and fatally shot himself in the head, Westminster police said.

In the car with Duong Hong Vu was a new .22-caliber pistol, complete with the box, the receipt and a letter informing him that the 30-day wait required by state law was over and Vu could pick up the weapon he had ordered, Lt. Andrew Hall said.

The suicide, which is believed to have occurred around 5 p.m., went unnoticed until someone called police at 5:25 p.m. to complain that a car with its hazard lights flashing was blocking the center lane of Bolsa Avenue, near Bushard Street, in the heart of Little Saigon.

A traffic officer readying to have the car towed noticed the body inside, Hall said.

Vu had placed several paper signs on his vehicle, one depicting a heart with a dagger through it and others bearing messages such as “Give me back my private” that police have yet to interpret.

The victim had been seen driving the car in the area earlier in the day with the same signs attached.