Hundreds Gather to Honor Murdered Sikh Cabbie

Community organizes funds for family

More than 300 people attended a memorial service for murdered San Francisco taxi driver Sukhpal Singh Sodhi at El Sobrante Gurdwara on Aug. 8. Sodhi was the brother of Balbir Singh Sodhi, one of the first fatal victims of the Sept. 11 backlash who was gunned down outside a Mesa, Ariz., gas station.

Kim Singh, a member of the Asian American Public Policy Institute (AAPPI), is one of several community members who is trying to raise money for the family of Sukhpal Singh Sodhi. At a press conference following the service, Singh said, “We raised two [central] issues. One was the amount [of] Sikh Americans [who] are discriminated against by average Americans. The other was the issue of gun control.”

Police are hesitant to label Sodhi’s death as a hate crime. Sodhi was killed while driving down 24th Street towards Mission Street, an area notorious for gang violence. Police believe Sodhi may have been killed accidentally by a stray bullet from rival gangs.

“It doesn’t seem like this was a hate crime,” admits Singh, “but it is important not to discount anything. We’ve called the police regularly, but, as of now, there is no motive.”

Singh feels that it is time to address a larger issue of discrimination.

“The average American is very, very ignorant,” Singh said bluntly. “There is very little exposure in the media. The majority of Americans get their news from the six o’clock news. If I had been born here, I would’ve been just as ignorant.”

AAPPI, apart from raising funds for Sodhi’s family, also educates the public about Sikh Americans. Workshops are planned for the Bay Area and Silicon Valley, Singh said.

Like many Indian-born Sikhs in America, the Singh brothers had sent much of their income to improve living conditions in their native Indian village. Both brothers were also supporting wives and children back in India.

Donations for the victims’ families can be sent to the Sodhi Family Memorial Fund, Bank One, Arizona Mail Code AZ1-1285, 241 North Central Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85004. The account number is 11308-8566.

Another fund has been set up to provide educational materials and promote events that encourage deeper respect for all cultures and beliefs. Donations can be sent to the Sodhi Family Embrace Diversity Fund, Amar Infinity Foundation, 2313 N. Richland St., Phoenix, AZ 85006.

— Avy Mallik, Special to AsianWeek

CRIME & JUSTICE

Indicted for Bribery

Vincent Nguyen surrenders to police and hands off his 3-year-old son to police following a five-hour standoff in March. Photo by The Associated Press.

Vincent Nguyen, 25, was charged with offering $70,000 to a Department of Corrections officer to allow him to escape during a July court date, according to the indictment. His fiancee, Hai Nguyen, was also arrested and charged with attempted bribery in connection with the escape plot.

Vincent Nguyen has been held at Rikers Island Jail after allegedly shooting Tuan Thiu, 20, to death during a dispute at a New Jersey wedding reception in March. When police arrived at Hai’s home to question him, Nguyen allegedly barricaded himself in the apartment and threatened to kill his son during a five-hour standoff. The toddler was not harmed in the incident.

Nguyen was later charged with homicide and reckless endangerment for taking his son hostage. Separate robbery, assault and weapon charges are also pending against him in California. Hai Nguyen is not the mother of the child involved in the March incident, authorities said.

Prosecutors say Nguyen offered the bribe in mid-June, while a guard was transporting him from Kings County Hospital to a court appearance in Brooklyn. Nguyen allegedly offered the guard money to allow him to escape during his next court date on July 2. Instead, the guard reported the bribe offer and later helped investigators set up a sting.

In late June, Hai Nguyen allegedly met with an undercover detective posing as the guard at a restaurant in downtown Manhattan to smooth out the details of the escape.

When Hai handed over the first payment to the undercover detective as promised two days later, she was arrested.

Vincent Nguyen has been charged with bribery and conspiracy. If he is convicted, he faces up to 15 years in prison.

“Mr. Nguyen is now facing serious criminal charges in three states,” said commissioner of the Department of Investigation, Rose Gill Hearn. “His escape attempt failed, thanks to the integrity and cooperation of law enforcement officers in the Department of Correction, who enabled DOI investigators to swiftly thwart Mr. Nguyen’s conspiratorial plan to flee.”

— Heather Harlan, Special to AsianWeek

SO SORRY

Torricelli’s Public Apology

New Jersey Sen. Robert Torricelli, his re-election bid wounded by an ethics case involving an APA campaign contributor, is wasting no time appealing to voters for forgiveness.

Torricelli’s campaign aired a television advertisement last week featuring the Democratic lawmaker talking directly to the camera and taking responsibility for his predicament involving contributor David Chang.

“I’m a fighter, and frankly the hardest thing for a fighter to do is admit mistakes,” Torricelli says in the ad, taped after the Senate Ethics Committee rebuked him for his relationship with Chang.

The committee, concluding its investigation, found that Torricelli accepted and failed to disclose gifts from Chang. It also said it was troubled by “incongruities, inconsistencies and conflicts” regarding what actions Torricelli took to aid Chang, who is now serving an 18-month prison sentence for making illegal donations to Torricelli’s 1996 campaign.

A spokeswoman for Sen. Daniel Inouye, who chaired the investigation, said the panel will not release transcripts or other documents. But the committee did fire off a letter to Torricelli, admonishing him for “poor judgement” in the acceptance of a TV, CD player and bronze statues from Chang.

— Laurence Arnold, The Associated Press, with Andrew Chow

Compiled by Andrew Chow (achow@asianweek.com) with AP wire services.