A man has been arrested over the organised crime-linked kidnapping and murder of a Bankstown woman earlier this year.
Thi Kim Tran, 45, was abducted by masked men from her Western Sydney home on April 17.
Police believe she was targeted due to her husband’s alleged connections to a Vietnamese-linked organised crime network based in Melbourne.
During her kidnapping, police said an eight-year-old boy was hit with a baseball bat and placed in an induced coma.
The home in Bankstown where Ms Tran was kidnapped from. (ABC News: Victoria Pengilley)
A 15-year-old boy was also at the home at the time was taken to hospital after Ms Tran was bundled into an SUV and never seen alive again.
Hours later at 11:30pm, police located Ms Tran’s remains in a burnt-out car in Beverley Hills.
Investigations revealed she had been shot dead.
Drug dispute allegedly behind kidnapping and murder
Superintendent Joe Doueihi speaking to reporters on Friday. (ABC News)
Police allege the man they charged with Ms Tran’s death — 29-year-old The Anh Nguyen — was tasked with solving a dispute over stolen drugs.
Speaking to reporters on Friday morning, Homicide Squad Commander Joe Doueihi said the 29-year-old did not pull the trigger to kill Ms Tran, but allegedly facilitated her violent demise.
“He [allegedly] did this by meeting the offenders beforehand, travelling in convoy with the offenders to the victim’s residence,” he said.
“Parking his car in the driveway and knocking on the front door with the three offenders standing behind him armed with a firearm, a baseball bat and with their faces covered.
“He [allegedly] stepped aside to allow the offenders to seriously assault the child and then kidnap and strip the woman naked in the street.”
Detectives had zeroed in on the man after drawing up a list of Ms Tran’s husband’s contacts and finding Mr Nguyen was allegedly a close associate and linked to a Victorian drug cartel.
Their actions, Superintendent Doueihi said, had “upset a few people in the criminal milieu” by targeting women and children.
“We don’t see that too often in NSW, it’s extremely rare. I’d say they upset a few people in the criminal milieu because this is not the norm,” he said.
Police on scene in Beverley Hills where Ms Tran’s remains were found. (ABC News)
“Family, females and children are not normally involved in these kind of attacks.”
On Thursday, officers from the Raptor Squad raided a unit in Bankstown where they arrested Mr Nguyen.
He has been charged with murder and grievous bodily harm and it will be alleged in court he facilitated the kidnapping and murder of Ms Tran.
Facing Bankstown Local Court on Friday, Mr Nguyen did not apply for his release on bail.
He will face court again in November.
Outside court his lawyer, Julie Nguyen, told reporters while it was very early in the legal proceedings her client intends to plead not guilty to the charges.
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5h agoThu 28 Aug 2025 at 11:01pm
Press conference finishes
That’s it from Superintendent Doueihi.
For more coverage of this story head to the ABC News website.
6h agoThu 28 Aug 2025 at 10:57pm
Man charged is a ‘close associate’ of Ms Tran’s husband
The 29-year-old was identified by police as detectives drew a web of those close to Ms Tran’s husband and zeroed in on the man as a “very close associate of the deceased’s husband”.
6h agoThu 28 Aug 2025 at 10:55pm
‘Murder crew’ still out there, police say
Talk is now turning to who the alleged murder crew are.
Superintendent Doueihi has told reporters he believes the perpetrators are “local” and still in Australia.
“They are a crew, muscle for hire, and they’ve been contracted by someone as part of that organisation to facilitate the kidnapping and murder of the female,” he said.
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