Son charged with murder after body police believe is missing dad found in Virginia yard
A 19-year-old Virginia man is charged with second-degree murder after police said a body believed to be his missing dad was found buried in a backyard this week.
Truman Nguyen, 78, was reported missing Monday after he was last seen Sunday, Maj. Ed O’Carroll with the Fairfax County Police Department said during a news briefing Wednesday. But in the hours after a family member made the report, police discovered “a lot more detail” about the case.
“We talked to a lot of folks, and they painted a much different picture than what the family member knew — and that additional information had us springing into action,” O’Carroll said.
The information police received qualified Nguyen for entry into a national database as a missing person.
But the case quickly turned from a missing person investigation into a homicide investigation, Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said during the Wednesday briefing.
Police received multiple leads on Tuesday and Wednesday about a body possibly buried in the backyard of a home on Nevius Street in Falls Church, O’Carroll said. On Wednesday, investigators responded to the home and uncovered the body.
O’Carroll said Wednesday that police were waiting on the medical examiner to positively identify the body and to determine the cause and manner of death.
But he said police had “probable cause” to arrest Nguyen’s son, Philip Nguyen, on Wednesday afternoon and to charge him with second-degree murder. He is being held at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center without bond.
O’Carroll said Philip Nguyen is from Falls Church and previously lived at the residence where the body was found.
He said officers had responded to the home multiple times, including for “domestic disputes” and “domestic-related incidents.”
Police are investigating the incident and collecting evidence, and O’Carroll said the investigation is “complex.”
“Although a body has been discovered, although an arrest has been made, this case is far from concluding. We have a lot of work to do,” O’Carroll said.
This story was originally published September 9, 2021 at 1:52 PM with the headline "Son charged with murder after body police believe is missing dad found in Virginia yard."
