Man at Center of Protests Accused in Video Piracy

The Little Saigon shopkeeper who sparked weeks of protests by hanging Communist symbols in his Westminster video store was arrested and charged Tuesday with distributing thousands of pirated videos from his shop.

Truong Van Tran, accompanied by his attorney, turned himself in to police before being arraigned before a Westminster Superior Court judge on the felony charge, which carries a five-year maximum sentence.

Although Deputy Dist. Atty. Dan Wagner argued that Tran--who recently visited Vietnam--poses a flight risk, Judge Brett London agreed to release the defendant on his own recognizance, posting no bail, provided he surrendered his passport.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 19.

Before the hearing, Tran strongly denied the charges, insisting he had obtained permission from distribution companies to duplicate and rent the videotapes to about 1,000 video store members.

“I never copy American tapes because I know that’s against the law,” Tran said.

But prosecutors said he violated copyright laws by purchasing master copies of films made in Asia and then copying them on to blank tapes using more than 100 VCRs in his Westminster store. Authorities confiscated more than 17,000 videos, 90% of which were allegedly counterfeits.

“We think it’s a strong cases--that’s why we charged him,” Wagner said.

Tran has been the focus of a two-month saga that began when he hung a Communist flag and picture of Ho Chi Minh at his former video store on Bolsa Avenue. The display ignited passionate protests from thousands of Vietnamese emigres in the community who considered the Communist symbols offensive.

The protests, which inspired similar demonstrations in Vietnamese communities around the country, ended after Tran gave up his efforts to reopen his store last week.

Authorities had been investigating Tran for almost a month, ever since they entered his store and noticed a string of VCRs hooked up to one unit.

Officers were in the store to protect Tran from protesters as he put the flag and photo back up following a court victory.