Asian gangs' violence felt in Stanislaus County

Youths' vulnerability, culture gap fuel growth

Friday, Jan. 28, 2011
By Rosalio Ahumada
rahumada@modbee.com
The Sacramento Bee (California, USA)

Law enforcement in Stanislaus County focuses a lot of attention on Latino street gangs because of the number of members and the extent of their criminal activities: drug trafficking, robberies and homicides.

But Southeast Asian gangs, while less prevalent in the Northern San Joaquin Valley, are still part of the area's criminal landscape and are just as dangerous as their Latino rivals.

"The gun means power; the gun means respect; the gun means status," Modesto police Detective Ra Pouv said about the mentality of Southeast Asian gang members. "If someone disrespects you, it's on."

The deadly nature of the Southeast Asian gangs was evident this week in Modesto after a married couple and their adult daughter were killed during an apparent robbery at their Yosemite Boulevard Asian goods market.

Vanh Thammavongsa, 55, was pronounced dead at the scene Tuesday. His 49-year-old wife, Phouvieng Thammavongsa, and their daughter were taken by ambulance to a hospital. His wife died at the hospital Tuesday afternoon.

Daughter Nanci Thammavongsa, 28, died Thursday after hospital officials turned off life-support machines.

The Thammavongsas were refugees from Laos who came to this country to work for a better life for their family. They owned and operated V&V Oriental Market at 1320 Yosemite Blvd., east of Santa Cruz Avenue.

Thou Yang of the Hmong Association of Stanislaus County said the deaths of the Thammavongsas are shocking, leaving him to wonder what could have been done to prevent it.

"There's just a lot of sadness," Yang said. "I think it's just a big shock to this Southeast Asian community."

Three young men -- known by police to be members of a Modesto Southeast Asian gang -- have been charged with three counts of murder in the deaths of the Thammavongsas.

Pouv, an expert in Asian-American street gangs who is assisting homicide detectives in the market shooting, said that to understand Southeast Asian gangs in Modesto, you have to start at the beginning.

Their origins lay in the few square miles that encompass west Modesto.

Refugees were fleeing war-torn Southeast Asia and looking for a new start in the United States. Pouv was born in Cambodia and moved with his family to Modesto, where he grew up.

He said a lot of families settled in west Modesto, finding affordable homes in areas around Modesto High School, Roselawn Avenue and Paradise Road.

The newcomers encountered racial tensions with black, white and Latino residents, who already were living in the neighborhood. Pouv said Southeast Asian youths came together to form a group that would provide them protection in the tough neighborhood.

The detective said the group didn't participate in criminal activity, create a street gang name or claim the neighborhood as its own. He said that group, simply dissipated as a new crop of Southeast Asian kids came together with sinister intentions.

They became the Modesto Hit Squad, modeled after the Crips, a black gang that had spread out of South Central Los Angeles and gained members in Northern California cities such as Modesto.

Like the Crips, the Modesto Hit Squad wore blue gang attire, committed robberies and sold drugs, eventually becoming just as dangerous as the Southern California gang.

Gangs proliferated

Pouv said the Modesto Hit Squad is still active and has inspired several other Southeast Asian gangs in Modesto, including the Crazy Mobb Family, the Asian Boyz and the Tiny Rascal Gang.

Another is the CWA Crips, also known as Crips With Attitude. Oloth "Dicky" Phommahaxay, 18, Sophon Theoun Ting, 16, and Chris Douangkham, 15, are members of the CWA Crips, according to a criminal complaint filed in court.

The Modesto teenagers are accused of murder in the deaths of the Thammavongsas, with gang enhancements that could bring longer sentences. They pleaded not guilty in court Friday.

"Southeast Asian gangs are pretty violent groups," said Pouv, a member of the Modesto police Gang Investigations Unit. "The concept of disrespect is a big thing in these gangs. It's almost more personal than Latino gangs."

He said disrespecting someone is like dishonoring yourself, and it's never tolerated.

Also unlike Latino gangs, the Southeast Asian gangs are not territorial and they don't fight over neighborhood turf. Pouv said the gangs focus on selling drugs, committing robberies and stealing cars.

"Like the Latino gangs, they have a tendency to prey on victims of their own race," Pouv said.

Their victims, having dealt with oppressive ruling regimes in their home countries, often still have a distrust of police and government officials. Pouv said their limited English-speaking skills also keep them from reporting crimes.

Tough to ask for help

It's even tougher for parents of Southeast Asian youths to ask for help in pulling their kids out of gangs.

Jean Kea is a youth outreach coordinator at west Modesto's The Bridge Resource Center, which offers services for Cambodian, Hmong, Laotian and other Asian families. He said the cultural gap between parents and their children leads to trouble.

"(The parents) don't know the language, and they can't help their kids with their homework," Kea said. "(The children) then don't want to go to school."

More time on the streets can lead to vulnerable kids lured into gangs. Kea said the center has after-school programs to keep kids off the street, but more are needed.

Pouv said Southeast Asian youths gravitate toward gangs because they're trying to rebel and become more assimilated to the American youth culture they see around them.

'Afraid to say anything'

For traditional Southeast Asian families, he said, it's a source of shame to let people outside your family know your problems.

"Some recognize the signs, but are too afraid to say anything," Pouv said. "There's no such thing as counseling with Southeast Asian families."

Pouv said it can be tough to get these residents to help with an investigation, but it has happened.

In April 2008, a surge of tips from Modesto's Cambodian community helped investigators find and arrest four people suspected in the shooting death of a man hit by stray gang gunfire.

The community rallied to show support for the victim's family and gave crucial information to Pouv, who was then a member of the police Street Crimes Unit.

He said it's even more important to keep kids from joining gangs, but he's seen gang members as young as 11 years old.

"It's the lifestyle that pulls them in, the money," Pouv said. "The gangs have so much influence on these kids."

Bee staff writer Rosalio Ahumada can be reached at rahumada@modbee.com or 578-2394.