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Title: Fatal beating in St. Louis was result of "knockout game"
Source:
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URL Source: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/ ... 99-5ede-94be-a05ddd7ab59e.html
Published: Apr 23, 2011
Author: Marlon Walker
Post Date: 2011-04-23 09:15:37 by no gnu taxes
Keywords: None
Views: 567
Comments: 1
I love Obama. He be like me.
A man beaten to death this weekend on the city's south side was reportedly the victim of a game involving "unprovoked attacks on innocent bystanders."
The alderman representing the Dutchtown West neighborhood where Hoang D. Nguyen, 72, was fatally beaten said police have said the attackers were part of a group targeting people across the city.
On Wednesday, Elex Levell Murphy, 18, of the 5400 block of Geraldine Avenue, was charged with one count each of first-degree murder and first-degree assault and two counts of armed criminal action in the attack on Nguyen and his wife, Yen, according to court records. A judge has ordered him held without bail.
Murphy and three other people approached the Nguyens in an alley at the 3800 block of Spring Avenue at 10:45 a.m. Saturday as the couple headed home from a nearby Vietnamese market, according to court records.
The couple used the alley as a shortcut to their apartment, at Spring and Chippewa Street.
Yen Nguyen told authorities that Murphy walked up to her husband, grabbed his jacket and punched him in the head, causing him to fall to the ground, court records say. Murphy then punched Yen Nguyen in the eye, causing severe bruises and an eye socket fracture. A second man kicked Hoang Nguyen in the abdomen, injuring his ribs.
Hoang Nguyen died later Saturday of his injuries at St. Louis University Hospital.
Police did not say how they zeroed in on Murphy, but there was surveillance video of the attack from a nearby business.
Police records show that Murphy was arrested twice this month on suspicion of larceny and trespassing. Prosecutors have not yet filed charges in either case.
Murphy was released from City Jail on April 14, two days before the Nguyens were attacked.
Police said they were still looking for the three others, a man and two women in their teens or 20s, in the attack.
Murphy was taken into custody Tuesday. In an interview, he made a statement placing himself at the scene, court records say. He also told authorities that the attack was part of what he called the "knockout game," which targets innocent people.
Police said they were not aware of any other recent incidents that might be the result of such a game.
But Alderman Jennifer Florida, whose ward includes the area where the Nguyens were attacked, said she has been told the couple were victims of a group that has targeted others.
"I have learned in the last few days that there is a group of kids that randomly pick victims and prey on the vulnerable, and this is happening all over the city," Florida said, declining to reveal her source, only to say it was someone familiar with the investigation.
She said police told her they don't believe the attack is a hate crime. Until all the attackers are in custody and have been questioned, she said such a motive should not be ruled out.
"This is horrible, just horrible," Florida said. "... This man came here to retire, to be with his children, and this happened. It's just heartbreaking."
The Nguyens came to St. Louis from Vietnam about three years ago to be with their son, daughter and a grandson. Hoang Nguyen was taking English classes and hoping to become a U.S. citizen.
Family members have come from across the country this week for his funeral, set for 8 a.m. today at Resurrection of Our Lord Parish, 3900 Meramec Street.
The suspects 'should think about what they do and be responsible, repent and turn themselves in," said Billy Nguyen, 26, of Virginia, who attended his great-uncle's wake Wednesday night. "I think if my great-uncle were here right now, he'd forgive them for what they did if they learned that whatever they are doing is wrong."
Billy Nguyen said his family is in disbelief over what happened and stunned each time they hear Yen Nguyen's story.
News that their family member's death was possibly part of a game is even more difficult to comprehend.
"People are walking down the street, minding their own business. Good people," Billy Nguyen said. "What kind of game is it where people go around and hit random people?"
Lan Nguyen, the victims' daughter, said through Billy Nguyen that she was grateful that an arrest had been made and hoped it would eventually "help the community become a better and safer place."
Florida, the alderman, said she and other neighborhood leaders are organizing a meeting about safety with the Vietnamese community. Many of them are scared and confused, worried that they could be targets as well, she said.
"We have many of the Vietnamese elders living here," Florida said. "Their children live in the county and are going to swoop them out of here."
That's what Lan Nguyen did Sunday. She packed her mom's belongings and moved them to her south St. Louis County apartment.
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#1. To: no gnu taxes (#0)
I guess Levell needs to play that game with a VN or Loation gang. He won't like it.
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