Santa Ana woman gets two years in jail for her actions against a Buddhist temple

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE

Case # 16CF0751

Date: July 5, 2017

WOMAN SENTENCED TO TWO YEARS IN JAIL FOR HATE CRIME, GRAND THEFT, AND VANDALISM FOR STEALING THREE GOLD STATUES FROM BUDDHIST TEMPLE IN SANTA ANA

*Defendant was out of custody after being convicted of vandalism of religious property

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A woman was sentenced to two years in county jail today for committing a hate crime, grand theft, and vandalism for stealing three gold statues from a Buddhist temple in Santa Ana.

Defendant: Trang Thu Pham, 48, Santa Ana

Pleaded guilty today to felony counts of:

• Grand theft
• Vandalism of a religious property
• Sentencing Enhancement Allegation
  • Committing a hate crime
  • Two years in county jail

Circumstances of the Case

• Between Feb. 26, 2016, and March 6, 2016, Pham took three separate gold Buddha statues from a Buddhist temple in Santa Ana.
• A volunteer at the temple noticed that the statues were missing and contacted Santa Ana Police Department, who investigated this case.
• The defendant was observed on surveillance cameras near the statues that were stolen from the temple and was arrested by SAPD on March 18, 2016.

Prosecutor: Senior Deputy District Attorney Jess Rodriguez, Special Prosecutions Unit

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TONY RACKAUCKAS, District Attorney

Susan Kang Schroeder, Chief of Staff
Office: 714-347-8408
Cell: 714-292-2718

Michelle Van Der Linden,Spokesperson
Office: 714-347-8405
Cell: 714-323-4486

Art Pedroza Editor

Our Editor, Art Pedroza, worked at the O.C. Register and the OC Weekly and studied journalism at CSUF and UCI. He has lived in Santa Ana for over 30 years and has served on several city and county commissions. When he is not writing or editing Pedroza specializes in risk control and occupational safety. He also teaches part time at Cerritos College and CSUF. Pedroza has an MBA from Keller University.

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