CHILLING: Vietnamese Family-related Mass Killing in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

• published: 31 Dec 2014
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'The family had trouble, problems': What we know about the victims and crime scenes. Edmonton Mass Murder 2014. (Edmonton Journal) A Vietnamese family with three children live at 1608 Haswell Court, the first scene touched by tragedy Monday night. Canada Mass Shooting 2014 Police say Cyndi Duong, 37, was shot in the home. It’s unclear what ties her to the suspect and the other crime scenes. Duong and her husband, David Luu, had three children ages six to 13. According to neighbours, a grandmother also lived at the house — government documents list a 59-year-old woman, Huong Lam, as a resident at the home. The two-storey house is on a quiet cul-de-sac in the Haddow neighbourhood of southwest Edmonton. It backs onto a stormwater pond. Luu and Duong took out a mortgage in June 2009 for $655,000. Minraj Chawla, 12, said he played street hockey all summer with the couple’s oldest son. He and his mother Dimple Chawla, said they didn’t know when the family moved to Canada, but only the grandmother struggled with English. Decals on the back of the new Toyota SUV parked in the driveway describe a family of three, with an oldest son who loves hockey and a mother who loves to shop. On Wednesday morning, a small memorial with a red heart, pink flowers and a handful of candles was outside the home on Haswell Court. Four cars were parked outside the home, and the man who answered the door would not comment on the deaths. Two women later came out of the house with the man, loaded the trunks of the cars with belongings and drove away. Most neighbours said they didn’t know the family and didn’t didn’t see or hear anything unusual on Monday night. Liz Fulton-Lyne lives a few doors down from the house. Her daughter sometimes plays with one of the sons, who she said is about 13, but she didn’t know the parents. The owner of It’s All About Kids Daycare downtown said all three of Cyndi Duong’s children, two boys and a girl, attended the downtown facility from 2002 to 2011. Duong’s daughter left the daycare in 2011, said Heather Ratsoy. Most children leave before starting kindergarten around age five. “When I found out we knew part of the family, it hit me really hard,” Ratsoy said. “The kids were awesome, dad was awesome, Cyndi was awesome. We didn’t get to see her as often because she worked in the opposite direction, so he would bring the kids mostly, but they always attended all the events.” Ratsoy believes Cyndi Duong’s husband David Luu worked for the city. “They were very active … They were happy kids and they interacted. They were a great family. Dad stopped in and we chatted all the time,” she said. “I can’t believe it because if the children were there when it happened … It’s really sad, just really sad.” It’s unclear what ties the family to the gruesome homicide scene in north Edmonton. But it seems someone at the house recognized the shooter Monday night. At that time, police said they had information on the suspect but he was not in custody. A two-storey home in the north end where seven people were found dead Monday night is owned by a financially strapped Vietnamese couple, documents show. Sources tell the Journal that investigators have identified one of the home’s owners, Phu Lam, 53, as the suspect in the eight killings. Lam owned the house with Thuy-Tien “Tien” Truong. Police said the suspect was the one found dead in a Fort Saskatchewan restaurant. The crime scene is a home in the Klarvatten neighbourhood at 18024 83rd St. A tax assessment pegged its value at $400,000. Lam and Truong took out a $365,000 mortgage in July 2012 through Royal Bank. Thanh Nguyen, a friend who stopped by the home Tuesday afternoon, described Lam as “a really nice guy,” but noted that “the family had trouble, problems.” Court documents show a judgment of $25,000 had been issued against Truong, 35, after she was sued by the Royal Bank in 2013. Lam filed a bankruptcy proposal in February 2013. Lam had retired, said Nguyen. His ex-wife owns a Fort Saskatchewan restaurant. Police said three women, two men and two children were found dead in the home. It’s unclear exactly who those victims are. Neighbours say a couple lived in the home with two children, a boy around age eight and a toddler, as well as an elderly woman. One of the children was Lam’s, said Nguyen; the other was from his partner’s previous relationship. Shattered glass and a heavy police presence surrounded a popular Vietnamese restaurant in Fort Saskatchewan Tuesday. VN Express at 10213 100 Ave. is legally owned by Chau Duong Thi Tran, a 59-year-old Edmonton woman. She bought the restaurant in 2013. Area business owners say the restaurant is busy and sold great green onion cakes. video footage caught on tape cellphone camera surveillance raw dash cam