Minh Duy Tong Nguyen, also known as Tony Playboy, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement after being released from state prison in Houston on April 16. Nguyen had been a fugitive wanted for the murder of two people and the attempted murder of three others following a violent gang-related shootout at Givral’s Sandwich Shop in Houston’s Little Saigon area on Jan. 30, 1989.
Nguyen was associated with the Nomads gang, a Vietnamese street gang active in Houston that was involved in turf wars and home invasions. In 1988, he began leading his own faction within the group, which led to violent confrontations with rival members.
"Nguyen came to the United States with lawful permanent resident status in 1980, but he threw away his green card — choosing a life of gang violence and murdering two people on U.S. soil,” said ICE Director Todd M. Lyons. “On Jan. 30, 1989, he was involved in a shootout at Givral’s Sandwich Shop in Houston’s Little Saigon area. The exchange of gunfire resulted in two deaths — three others were injured. While most of the other gang members were captured, Nguyen escaped.”
After fleeing to Canada following the incident, Nguyen's case received national attention when it was featured on an episode of "America’s Most Wanted" aired Jan. 14, 1990. He was apprehended later that month in Toronto and extradited to Texas where he faced trial for murder charges.
Nguyen was convicted of murder by a Harris County jury in May 1990 and sentenced to forty-five years in state prison; prosecutors had considered seeking the death penalty but did not pursue it further after conviction. His legal appeals were unsuccessful as an appellate court upheld his conviction in April 1991.
Immigration authorities began deportation proceedings against Nguyen soon after his conviction; by 1998 his removal order became final according to immigration officials cited by ICEgov social media channels.
After spending more than thirty years incarcerated for these crimes and upon completion of his sentence this month, ICE took custody of Nguyen under an immigration detainer pending deportation.
