Two Vietnamese brothers who went on a shooting rampage in Tennessee 3 years ago pleaded guilty to multiple attempted murder charges. A third Viet accused in the shooting is going to trial, reports the Memphis Commercial Appeal here.
Phu “Phillip” Pham, 29, and Qui “Tommy” Pham, 23, were sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in prison – a sweet deal especially given that the targets of the multiple attempted murders were cops.
The third alleged shooter, Victor Bach, 25, is set for trial in December.
The three were allegedly sitting in a parked Honda pickup near a store in Cordova, Tennessee, around 3am on Aug. 1, 2006, when a police lieutenant spotted them. The police had been watching the area for burglary, according to news reports of the time copied here and here.
The truck took off, the lieutenant called for backup and followed.
He pulled them over. The men opened the truck’s rear window and stuck out an AR-15 assault rifle – like the one in the picture.
The cop saw the barrel, he ducked, and the shot missed. The men hit his squad car multiple times.
Thus began a shoot out featuring a AR-15 assault rifle, a 9mm Glock pistol, and a shotgun.
Backup came, and they allegedly shot that cop too.
Then they drove off. As cops followed, they shot from the truck while driving. That’s when they hit a bystander sitting in his BMW and injured him in his arm.
The police finally caught up with them and arrested Phu Pham and Victor Bach. Qui Pham turned himself in the next day.
While it’s clear that many shots were fired, different versions exist as to who was holding which firearm. Victor Bach, the defendant still on the dock, said the Pham brothers did all the shooting and Bach was just sitting there.
Phu Pham, however, said he was driving and shooting the 9mm pistol, while the other two were shooting the assault rifle and the shotgun. Qui Pham, apparently smarter than the average criminal, refused to give a statement and still managed to get his plea deal.
These punks are really lucky that these officers did not mow them down like dogs! If they were in SCAL, police officers would kill on sight, no sympathy here. If anyone is interested, take a look inside a police cruiser, you will find at two rifles, a shotgun and the other, AR-15.
Oh man!