9 Arrested in Attacks at Garden Grove Cyber Cafe

Nine people tied to Asian gangs have been arrested in connection with violent attacks at a popular Garden Grove cyber cafe, including a Dec. 30 incident in which a man was fatally stabbed in the head with a screwdriver.

Jim Hoang Nguyen, 21, of Irvine was arrested early Wednesday on suspicion of killing Phuong Huu Ly, 20, who was stabbed at the PC Cafe in the 9500 block of Garden Grove Boulevard.

Police also arrested eight teenagers--five boys and three girls--at high schools in Westminster and Garden Grove for their alleged roles in a Nov. 30 attack at the cyber cafe.

That melee involved baseball bats and resulted in two serious injuries, officers said.

The arrests were “a matter of good police work and a lot of luck,” said Sgt. Mike Handfield, a spokesman for the Garden Grove Police Department.

The names of the teenagers--all students at Bolsa Grande High School in Garden Grove and La Quinta High School in Westminster--were not released because of their ages. All are 16 or 17. They were taken to Orange County Juvenile Hall, where they were booked on suspicion of conspiracy and attempted murder.

Handfield said police are seeking three other people in connection with the fatal cafe attack.

“They are members of a gang which we believe is a rival to the gang the victim was associated with,” Handfield said.

Since the attacks, police have stepped up patrols at dozens of late-night cyber cafes scattered around central Orange County. The cafes have opened in Garden Grove and surrounding cities, bustling through the night with teenagers who come to access the Internet and play video games.