Hi, hi, you found me! Before we dive into this true-crime case, I want to give a heads-up that it contains some sensitive content, including:
- The death of a child with graphic descriptions in autopsy
- Outdated speech and ideals about autism and disabilities
- Brief discussions of racism
- Disturbing content about Neo-Nazis and Skinheads
Please take care of yourself and only continue reading if you feel comfortable doing so. Now, let's get into it! This research is for "Hands Off My Podcast," and I'm thrilled to share it with you. If you haven't already, be sure to give the podcast a listen over at https://handsoffmypodcast.transistor.fm/ There should be at least one episode about this case, and I think they had planned to do another.
Special acknowledgment goes out to u/Rebelscum320 / Kanon Beltran for providing valuable interviews and research that helped make this blog post possible. Please show your support by signing their petition and following their social media accounts. Kanon has a passion for cold cases in their local area, so be sure to give them a follow! Check out their petition at https://www.change.org/p/garland-police-department-mesquite-police-department-reopen-the-unsolved-case-of-kim-nguyen-aged-8-of-garland-texas-fa52464f-97a8-45ac-b4f9-a4f73993086e
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Thank you for your continued support! Let's work together to make a difference in these cases.
*Queen Santa Muerte, I beseech thee to turn your gracious gaze upon this case and bestow your benevolent blessings upon the victim and their loved ones. I implore you to intercede on their behalf and guide the hands of those who seek justice, so that the right outcome may be obtained. With humble reverence, I offer this prayer to you. Amen.
The area was seeing an influx of released prisoners due to overcrowding. Unfortunately, there had been several mistakes with this situation, such as the oversight that freed Michael Blair, a repeat child sex offender. In addition, there was the purposeful release of a child killer and sex offender Paul Meza for "good behaviors."
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120326342/consequences-of-paroles/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120387689/estells-parents-sue-state/
June
Fort Worth, Texas, cracks down on gangs with a zero-tolerance policy because of the violence they have inflicted on citizens, including children. The gangs said it just worsens the situation because they would take their pain out on other people for the law harassment.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfZdNrEBlTU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsg_Atr0OUU
The following days before Kim Nguyen went missing, he was moving the coffee table to stand on and unlock the chain lock at the top of the front door. This lock was in place after he learned to open the regular locks. Then he would elope only to the end of the street to stim and watch cars. Cars were a special interest, so it would take multiple people to move him away from the corner spot and back into the house. One of the easier ways to convince him to go home was to get into the family car, roll up next to him, and invite him on a ride. It was easier than convincing him to leave his favorite thing. With the chain lock, this behavior had been stopped for a bit, but a family member who wished to remain private interviews with writer Kanon Beltran told them that he had started to get out again with the discovery of standing on the coffee table and this was within days of his disappearance.
According to an article by relias.com, nearly 50% of autistic children have attempted to elope or successfully eloped from a known adult. The leading cause of death for autistic children is drowning.
The article mentions that locks are advised but don't always work to stop the tragedy. The report then advocates finding the root cause of what motivates the autistic child to elope, and here are some of the reasons.
"To get away from a place, activity, or person (escape)
To obtain access to an item, activity, or person
To engage in an intrinsically pleasurable activity, such as running
To gain attention."
https://www.relias.com/blog/elopement-in-children-with-autism#:~:text=Nearly%2050%25%20of%20individuals%20with,autism%20spectrum%20disorder%20is%20drowning.
July 17, 1993 (Saturday)
The Nguyen visited a family member's house and stayed out very late. They returned home.
*Information from Kanon Beltran's interview
July 18, 1993 (Sunday)
The family home is surrounded by thick forest and was a first-story brown brick house on 700 block Thornhill Drive, Garland, Texas. It's likely the home was 717 Thornhill Ln. The home was four houses away from the stop sign on Castle Road. Their home phone is an unlisted number. The area is described as a small working-class neighborhood.
Google Maps location is set to the likely corner/stop sign. https://tinyurl.com/3x3j44h4
1:00 am Rudolph Nguyen (father) last saw his son sleeping.
In 2022 u/Rebelscum320 / Kanon Beltran interviewed an unnamed relative of Kim Nguyen's, and they shared a bit of the interview in their write-up about the case on Reddit.
"I don't mind sharing, but I don't even know where to begin. I have my theories about what happened. I was asleep that morning. We had returned late that evening after going over to a family friend's house and being there so late. I was super groggy, and I woke up to the sounds of everyone panicking. My mom was screaming that she couldn't find Kim. I remember brushing it off, thinking he's probably just at the end of the street again. Michael came into the room to tell me Kim was missing and to get up to help look for him. I told him to check the end of the street, to which he said he wasn't there. Then I panicked."
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/sm0c8s/kim_nguyen_the_full_story_of_garlands_forgotten/
*more about this later, but Kim Nguyen had a habit of walking to the stop sign at the end of the street. There he liked to stim by flapping his arms/hands and watching cars. He would not leave this spot, however.
Eight-year-old Kim Nguyen was in a playful mood, and he wrestled with his older brother, twelve-year-old Michael, by poking and kicking him on the bed they shared in their family home. Michael eventually ended the play by telling his brother to go and watch some television by himself. They had woken up close to 7:00 am.
At 7:00 am, Rudolf (Randy) Nguyen checked on his son and realized he was not there. *there are a few sources that say the time was 8:00 am
7:30 am- 8:45 am Most newspapers report that within thirty minutes, they called the police to help find Kim Nguyen. One early newspaper says the call came in at 8:45 am. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120690388/kim-nguyen-missing/
"He just left the house. They turned around, and he was gone."
A neighbor reported seeing the boy outside at 8:20 am * unknown if this is the correct time. The paper this is written in has different times for the missing time that doesn't match the other papers.
Word spread quickly in the neighborhood, and a search takes place for the boy the same day, with around 50 people helping. The searches had started about four hours after the boy was reported missing, the time frame being about 11:00 -Noon.
The police, Garland's Emergency Corps members, friends, family, and community members joined to help. They look around the home and into the east Dallas suburb (reportedly within a 2-mile radius by police, but it seems volunteers went further). It's reported that they had bottles of water and photocopies of Kim Nguyen's photo and went door-to-door but also walked in the local creek and wooded areas.
Photos taken in 2021 show the home and the initial search area. These photos are courtesy of u/Rebelscum320 / Kannon Beltran
https://imgur.com/XFaR997
https://imgur.com/fcs5FOQ
"We walked 20 miles looking for him." Kristy Parrott said. (Kristy, 32, is a homemaker who has been on the search since day one, working twelve hours at a time.)
"We need a little bit of lady luck right now," said Brady Phipps after a four-hour search.
The heat was described as sweltering, and it slowed the searches down. It was close to 100 degrees during the day.
"It's very scary," said Manuel Ortegon, who lived with his wife and two children next to the Nguyens. "I would go out of my mind if it were happening to me." Ortegon searched until his legs ached. His wife, Kim Ortegon, tried to comfort the older brother Michael in front of the family home. Michael is described with dark eyes, smooth caramel skin, and coal-black cropped hair, and he looks similar to his younger brother. Kim Ortegon talks about how she would see the brothers playing together in the sprinklers on hot days.
Bob Barber, Commander of the Garland police, said it was hard to search for the boy since he had no hangouts or friends.
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
The search mainly had ended for the night around 10:00 pm when it became too dark. However, Rudolf Nguyen reported having kept looking into the early morning hours on this day and many others to come. Nguyen's other two children were unable to sleep from anxiety this night.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878050/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878286/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119909410/initial-reports/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
The case may have been mentioned on the ten pm news for KXAS-TV with Simms as the reporter. https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439644/m1/331/?q=Kim%20Nguyen
July 19, 1993 (Monday)
The police (About twenty-five officers working on the case. Though one source says it was twenty officers and twelve police academy rookie class. ) were still determining if another large-scale search would occur today or if it would have turned over to the police detectives, but a search did continue starting around noon.
https://newspaperarchive.com/crime-clipping-jul-20-1993-3767081/
Residents criticized the police for not doing enough to help the boy.
The search intensified, and police, cadets, neighbors, a dozen amateur radio operators, Garland Emergency Corps, and other volunteers began to comb the thick woods around the family home. Searches searched streets, yards, creeks, and the woods again but were still waiting for leads. Search teams would comb an area, and then another group would retrace.
People joined the searches to help even those who didn't know the Nguyens. For example, EDS accounting assistant Sharon Newton took time off work. "This isn't the best way to take a half-day vacation. But it's worth it."
Some children, such as thirteen-year-old John Jay, joined the searchers who used his ten-speed bike.
Gus Ray (20) was one of the young men that found the blue plaid shirt two and one-half miles away from the family home and continued to help search today.
Nancy Bean also searches because she is a neighbor to the Nguyens and is worried for her children. "When I realized that this happened in my neighborhood, I wouldn't let my kids out of the house, and I still won't let them out until this is over."
"Everything humanly possible is being done over and over again." Gary Richards, a police spokesman, said.
"I have three children at home, and if it was one of my children, I would like other volunteers to do it for me." Said Nina Whitten
The temperatures were close to 100 degrees again in the afternoon.
Rudolf Nguyen sat in the den of his home and answered questions about his son and described him to the papers. He must also verify that three young men found a blue plaid shirt in a nearby creek that was not his son's. "It's not his."
Nguyen stayed home to be ready to answer and confirm questions and comfort his wife, who was mute with fear. Son Michael and daughter Janmy are also home waiting on news.
Volunteer searchers ended around 5:00 pm to make way for sniffer dogs.
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "missing kid" at five pm and six pm news with Mcdonald as the Reporter. A site is working on digitizing the archives but has not reached the dates needed. However, a log book shows the dates and stories available. If you wish to pay for the digitizing of specific segments, the cost is placed on the requestor. I have yet to reach out to the company. I marked as many episodes as possible here in the timeline, but if they were named anything unique, I would not know if it was about Nguyen or someone else. https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/343/
Helicopters and equipment using body heat seeking were used in the search in the evening. The equipment was borrowed from Fort Worth.
Police had suspended their searches after this evening for a bit.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878563/kim-nguyen-searches/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878868/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
July 20, 1993 (Tuesday)
Volunteers meet daily at 9:00 am at D.D. Mailing and Fulfillment Service 1436 Castle Drive. The company has not opened for business and serves as the police command post. The center was created on this day. The police helped coordinate the volunteers.
According to u/Reblescum320 and their write-up, there had been another meeting location before this one. This location was originally a Daycare at 2180 Meridian and then moved on July 23, 1993, to D.D. Mailing and Fulfillment Service at 1436 Castle Drive. However, it appears the press reports only one location. Later, they told me the location switch was something they noticed while watching the news-press clip on youtube.
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/sm0c8s/kim_nguyen_the_full_story_of_garlands_forgotten/
Photo of the buildings taken in 2022 courtesy again to u/Rebelscum320,
https://imgur.com/4f8QYSq (1436 Castle Drive)
https://imgur.com/SCFrjJC (2189 Meridian)
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/sm0c8s/kim_nguyen_the_full_story_of_garlands_forgotten/
Volunteers are placed into groups of 10 to 20 people, info about Kim is handed to them, and each group gets a map of the area they are assigned to cover.
"I've been working here 14 hours a day since this began," said Diane Sivley (53 and retired banker), who was recruited by the police to help coordinate the searches. (They continue to work through the week as well)
Steve Frazier Garland Officer ensures that police check out anything suspicious reported by volunteers and advises on safety and where and how to conduct a thorough search. "The more organized this search effort is, the more effective it will be."
Volunteers go door-to-door in the area using photocopies of the boy's picture.
"We're in process of setting up as many search teams as possible to search the woods," Lt. D.J. Martin "And from there, hopefully, we'll gather enough information to find out where he might be if he is still in the area at all."
Twenty officers and twelve members of the police academy's rookie class were assigned to the case and assisted by a dozen amateur radio operators, members of Garland Emergency Corps, and others.
"I have three children at home, and if it was one of my children, I would like other volunteers to do it for me." Nina Whitten.
Another volunteer Len Pate was also helping this day for similar reasons.
Searchers worry that because of Nguyen's autism, he might not realize that people are looking to help him. In addition, the temperatures in the area were soaring.
Police say there has been no sign of foul play yet.
11:30 am at Garland Power and Light generating plant on East Walnut Street. This was several blocks outside of the police search zone.
Photo of the building taken in 2022 courtesy again to u/Rebelscum320
(These photos are from the back area of the Power Plant, there used to be two entrances, one on Walnut Street and one on Bankhead Street, and from my approximation, this area, possibly near the storm drain, so is where the unidentified resident found Kim's shirt.)
https://imgur.com/fKuahbE
https://imgur.com/oZn4ddi
https://i.imgur.com/z71dxyH.png
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/sm0c8s/kim_nguyen_the_full_story_of_garlands_forgotten/
This is the day Nguyen's shirt was found about one mile to 1.5 miles from his home on the street's curb. A male volunteer found the item, but the police declined to reveal their name to the public. The shirt showed no signs of foul play, but the police thought it was an alarming sign. Nevertheless, the father assumed it was good since his son would take off his clothes at random or inopportune times. The hope was then Kim would be near the shirt and found soon.
Police resume searching but are now in the area of the shirt. This upsets the volunteers who had continued the searches without the police's efforts.
"We worked so hard looking for the little boy. Now they won't tell us anything. It's nerve-racking." Gus Ray (20) was one of the three to find the other shirt that was not Kim's. "We've had more people from the community looking for the boy than the police." Thirty to forty volunteers worked Tuesday. Becky Northrop, a neighbor to Nguyen's family, was one of the few that continued.
"I haven't been able to sleep since all this happened she said."
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "missing kid" at ten pm with Androvett as the reporter.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119907932/garland-boy/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878286/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878050/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878286/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878689/kim-nguyen/
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
July 21, 1993 (Wednesday)
Police call off their physical searches. "They're waiting to come up with more leads." However, volunteers continue to look in the area with a group of 100 strong.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119908762/
The FBI became involved with the case, but they do not say why.
Cathy Glenn brings the family food because her son Alex aged seven, was a classmate of Kim's at Centerville Elementary School. Alex is also autistic, so Mrs. Glenn realized this situation could have been them.
Mr. Nguyen has been grateful for the community support. "It's not enough to say thank you, after this is over, no matter what happens, I will have to do something good for these people and this country."
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "Garland Kid latest" at ten pm with Marx as the reporter.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
July 22, 1993 (Thursday)
Two hundred fifty people helped search for Nguyen. Volunteers are still out looking but now concentrate on where the shirt had been found within the 2-mile radius of the boy's home. Quotes from volunteers indicate they may have been expanding the search even further.
"We are more optimistic today," said Brenda Jones (46), an insurance company worker who searched for six hours in the heat.
"We've covered a lot of territory today, and we're going out much farther than we have since the search began."
The FBI announced they suspected he had been kidnapped and was not in the state. However, they would not elaborate on why they thought this.
Special Agent Marjoire Poche said, "Something we discovered here has led us to conduct our investigation out of state."
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
"We have agents assigned to the case, we are continuing to assist the Garland police, and we have nothing new to report." said agent Marjorie Poche.
"I lost my hope when I heard that. They think my son is not here anymore." Nguyen's father said.
"The volunteers haven't given up hope, so neither should he." Said George Stanley
A 5,000 reward was offered in the case, and the money was donated by Joe Bellino, a Dallas Lawyer who frequently represents Vietnamese families. "I'll pay it regardless of who finds him." Bellino believed the child was kidnapped.
Garland police still classify the disappearance as a missing-persons case.
Rudolf Nguyen has yet to return to work and is not sleeping or eating well. Sarah Nguyen weeps uncontrollably and screams, thinking about her lost child. Rudolf tries to keep her out of the house, away from anything that will remind her of her child. Rudolph also believes his son was kidnapped. The situation affects the children too because when they are not distracted, they ask questions and start crying for the lost sibling. The kids have their friends over, and that encourages them to play to distract them more.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119907672/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878050/kim-nguyen/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "missing boy" at ten and six pm with Garcia and Kofler as the reporter.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
July 23, 1993 (Friday)
The search continued with about 75 volunteers.
Jason LaFon (19) took off work as a care repossessor to volunteer to search. They waded through muddy creek water, crawled through sewer tunnels, and climbed concrete silos. "I go places no one else will"
"My husband is griping a lot about me going out to search." said volunteer Shirley Flowers (29), a convenience store clerk. Flowers have been searching daily after 5:00 pm5:00 pm after her work.
"The chances of him being alive is very slim, but you hope he is." Said Harold Malone of Duncanville, who covered 10 miles of search on horseback on Friday.
Arturo Cantu searches Rowlett's field with his son Arturo Jr. (2).
Since Sunday, Roger and Nancy Thompson have cooked food and brought it to the Nguens daily. They also handed out about 3,000 fliers, and they were the ones to start the t-shirts and buttons made.
"After nine hours of working in construction, I come over with my wife and help out another five hours. It's like working two jobs." Mr. Thompson said.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119916243/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
This is the day the volunteer meeting location may have switched from the previously mentioned daycare to the fulfillment center.
Kanon Beltran, AKA /u/Rebelscum320, provides the photo of the location.
https://i.imgur.com/iyXcG7L.png
https://i.imgur.com/eacEwtB.png
They point out that the area is less isolated than first perceived.
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "missing boy" at five pm with Mcdonald as the reporter.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
Garland Police have Nguyen’s case classified as a missing persons case. https://imgur.com/HT444io
July 18 - 24, 1993
After a weeklong search, volunteers searched creeks, sewer tunnels, and woods. They had also mailed and posted fliers in the Garland area and nearby cities. In addition, they wore t-shirts with the boy's face on them as well. Buttons and bumper stickers had also been made. Dogs, Helicopters with body heat tracking tech, horseback riders, and coordinated volunteers had all been used.
Police planned on searching through the weekend but wanted to evaluate if they would continue on Monday. At this point, people worried Kim might not be able to respond to them for being too weak since he had been gone so long.
The police say they are grateful for the volunteers whose footwork enabled them to concentrate better on following leads. "We really appreciate the efforts of the volunteers," said Officer Lana Kirkhalm, a Garland Detective. Officer Frazier said the police went door to door in the evenings, asking questions and looking for leads.
The Red Cross donated food and Gatorade, which is a big help. "Without them, I don't think we could have lasted this long," said Officer Frazier.
//www.newspapers.com/clip/119916243/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119879942/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119916243/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "Missing Boy" at ten pm with Boswell as the reporter for the 24th.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
July 25, 1993 (Sunday)
Fifteen local Vietnamese leaders distributed 350 t-shirts with Kim Nguyen's face. The Thompson family had started the t-shirt project, but who funded the project has been anonymous. The shirts have the Garland police number on them.
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "Missing boy" at ten and six with Harrell as the reporter.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
July 26, 1993 (Monday)
Larry Rollins, public information officer, had said that on the 24th, they had wanted to search through the weekend but planned an evaluation on Monday if they could continue searching.
"There comes a time when you've done all you can do, but we will continue to be out there coordinating volunteers who are searching as long as they show up."
The police called off the searches in the area. They have no clues about the case and now leave the search to volunteers. "We have the operation running where we don't need officers directly supervising the search." said. "Police commander Bob Cortez. Officers will be available if needed. Diane Sivley said the searches would continue as long as people continue to turn out.
"When we all go home at night, we say we hope we don't have to see one another tomorrow." -Kirsty Parrott. "That would mean that the boy has been found."
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119916243/
An article written in 1996 about trained professionals' search and rescues vs. untrained residents points to Kim Nguyen's case as a learning example of what could happen if professionals are not called in first.
"Area residents scoured the area for several days before professional search teams were called to the scene, Stephens said."
"There were hundreds of well-meaning citizens who attempted to help find this child. The area was contaminated by their scent."
https://star-telegram.newspapers.com/clip/120011719/nguyen-searches-wrong/
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "Missing Child and Garland Seasrch" at ten five with Mylar as the reporter.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
July 27, 1993 (Tuesday)
The papers run articles about stranger danger while using Kim Nguyen as an example of the worst-case scenario. https://star-telegram.newspapers.com/clip/119970849/
July 27-28, 1993
Garland police announced they were looking for the driver of a white Chevrolet Blazer with 2-inch silver stripes on the sides, tinted windows, and a trailer hitch with a chrome ball. This blazer was seen by a neighbor who said the vehicle drove slowly by Kim Nguyen the day he had gone missing. The police said they did not know if the driver had a role in the disappearance but needed to talk with them. The police would not identify the female neighbor who had seen the blazer while driving along castle drive. Once she had passed Kim Nguyen, she looked in the rearview mirror to see the vehicle slow down and turn around near the boy. The woman had told the police what she had seen within hours of Kim being reported missing. The woman was distraught because she regretted not turning around. Kim Nguyen was standing on the corner, flapping his arms as if he was flying. "She feels like she made a mistake that if she had done something, she probably could have saved him." https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
Photos posted courtesy of /u/Reblescum320
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/sm0c8s/kim_nguyen_the_full_story_of_garlands_forgotten/
"While the exact model was still not given, my guess is it could have either been a K-5 model (The most common Blazer variant.) the S10 model. (a smaller pickup style variant.) or a K1500 variation (Which looks similar to a Tahoe.)"
( A white Chevy Blazer K5 model.) https://imgur.com/JDSOwKD
(A white Chevy Blazer S10 model.) https://imgur.com/508RQIo
(A white Chevy Blazer k1500 Model minus the stock wheels.) https://imgur.com/HirGWHb
(The corner where Kim had been last spotted was confirmed by multiple sources.) https://imgur.com/cd9SagS
( What the sole eyewitness may have seen when she was heading away from Thornhill Lane on Castle Drive.) https://imgur.com/fQuum2N
July 29, 1993, 6:20 pm6:20 pm (Thursday)
A nude body was discovered by two young boys walking near Interstate 635 and U.S. 80. (10-12 miles from the family home. The location is a mile southwest of town east mall) in a Mesquite field with three-foot-tall Johnson grass. The body was found 3/12 to 4 feet into the Johnson grass, several yards from a dead-end concrete road into the lot from the I-635 service road. According to Kanon Beltran, this area was being readied for a new shopping center.
One news source says the discovery was made around 6:20 pm; another says 6:00 pm; another says 6:10 pm. The young boys were Mesquite residents.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119906980/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4 *photo of the location
According to /u/Rebelscum320, through interviews with people involved in the case, the teenagers had run to a nearby U-Haul on the corner of Gross Road and highway Eighty service road as it was the only business open on Sunday.
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/sm0c8s/kim_nguyen_the_full_story_of_garlands_forgotten/
https://imgur.com/Zr8MNBk
On a Facebook 2020 memorial, Stacy Auldridge commented that she had driven by the service road the boy was found on.
"It was on the service road at the curve in front of Pet Smart. He was hidden in the tall grass. I drove by there everyday. I feel bad that I didnt see him. 2 kids on bikes found him and went to the convenience store across the street from the UHaul place and called police"
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=2952772401616265&set=gm.3352005594830696
/u/Rebelscum320 also provided a map they made.
(Map of the northwest corner of Highways 635 and 80 where Kim's remains were found. The pinned locations are places that were around but not open on the Sunday Kim vanished.) https://imgur.com/Zr8MNBk
The location had not been a part of the focused search area because police did not think the boy could have gone that far alone. This tips the police to believe in the foul play theory more since it was unlikely a nude 8-year-old could walk 10 miles without anyone seeing him.
Both Garland police and Mesquite police were on the scene.
The body tentatively identified as Nguyen. The police concluded the body might be the boy's because he was the only Asian child reported missing in the area. They further speculate that the body was dumped in the field shortly after his disappearance. The body was severely decomposed.
According to Robert Breckenridge, a Dallas County Medical Examiner's Office field agent, no signs of trauma were immediately apparent, but the body had begun to decompose. "We definitely won't know the cause tonight." There were no clothes found at the scene. In the final moments of daylight, the police brought in sniffer dogs to go over the whole lot while teams of police combed the lot.
Word spread quickly, and people clogged the service road and Highway 80 exit to get a glimpse of the situation. As a result, one man was arrested for several traffic violation charges, including refusal to move his car off the service road because he had stopped to watch the investigation.
*Michael Blair, in 2001, admits to having driven by this scene as well. He is involved with a child's death case but was exonerated later. More info later.
Law enforcement had not ruled out foul play. They still seek the driver of a white Chevrolet Blazer with tinted windows seen in the area the day Nguyen disappeared.
Tired, angry, and sad volunteers did not take the news well. They had all been hoping the boy was alive and well. Instead, the group vowed to start a new search for the killer.
"I'm angry that someone did something that violent or senseless," said David Emard, who had volunteered two days after Kim was reported missing. His wife Debbie and his two children had also helped in the searches. They lived down the street from Nguyens, but the families did not know each other.
Rudolph Nguyen was searching for his son when he was called to meet his wife Sarah and his other children at the police station around 8:00 pm to get the dreaded news.
Nancy Thompson, the neighbor making the family food, helped kick off the t-shirt campaign and joined searches bringing over a pineapple cake. This was Kim Nguyen's favorite.
The press talks to Nguyen later at home while he sits on the back porch swing crying. "Now that I know he's dead. I can go on." "I just want to live my life to help people like him" Previously, Nguyen had not been eating or sleeping because he couldn't stop thinking about his son, who was probably thirsty, hungry, and scared. Michael, the older brother, joined his father on the porch, and Nguyen told him to be strong. Mrs. Nguyen cried inside the house, managing a few words for the volunteers.
"He couldn't communicate. He was a helpless little boy. But, he knew how to love me. He would take my hand whenever he wanted something." - Sarah Nguyen said as she clutched her son's photo to her chest.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119877516/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "Missing boy found" at ten pm with Caldwell as the reporter.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
July 30, 1993 (Friday)
A police news conference was held at 10:00 am. People were encouraged to call information in "regardless how trivial" https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119907562/
At the news conference, many volunteers arrived wearing t-shirts. In addition, Donna Welch, Beck Northrop, and Brenda Jones were listed and photographed for the paper.
Police announced they believed the death was a homicide. However, Dallas County Medical Examiner had not made an identification yet. An autopsy began on this day at 7:45 am. The intention was also to use medical records (dental) to help identify the body. According to the autopsy report made available some years later, this identification does happen. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119906759/kim-nguyen-medical/
"We Do not have a cause of death yet, but we are operating on the assumption that it's a homicide," Garland Police Chief Terry Hensley said. "It's unrealistic to believe that a nude boy would walk 12 miles to that field and collapse. He had to get there someway."
Police have no suspects or motives, and they ask residents for help.
"There's someone out there that has noticed that there is a person they know acting strangely since Kim disappeared." "People don't do this kind of thing without people knowing it."
Rudolf Nguyen was angry but not vengeful at his son's killer. "I had hoped that because he was a handicapped boy that they wouldn't kill him." Rudolf shook with emotion when talking to the news.
Nguyen felt fortunate that they had found his son's body. He no longer worries if his son is hungry or thirsty. * some have taken issue with Rudolph's choice of words or viewpoint on the situation, but I would like to point out that English was not his first language and that he is a first-generation immigrant to America. The culture and language barriers would make it difficult to express grief. https://factsanddetails.com/southeast-asia/Vietnam/sub5_9d/entry-3382.html
"Now I [am] angry. There's no reason to kill him. He doesn't know how to talk. He's just a handicapped child. So, I thought maybe they would let him go."
Rudolf Nguyen thanks the police, FBI, and strangers for helping with the night and day search for his son. "People from 70 miles away came to help" "From Fort Worth, Arlington."
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119879942/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "Missing boy" and "Volunteers" (guessing volunteers is a story about Nguyen) at ten, six, and five Marx/Mylar as the reporters.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/341/
July 31, 1993 (Saturday)
Garland Police had a press conference and hoped to release the autopsy reports.
https://newspaperarchive.com/crime-clipping-jul-31-1993-3767180
Breckenridge had said they intended to conduct a more detailed body examination. "We think this is the boy."
Bill Lene, an official with Dallas County Medical Examiner's office, said the reports for autopsy and toxicology could take one to two more weeks, but at the same, they did not have a cause of death yet. Mr. Lene said that despite his body condition, they could determine how he died.
"It certainly appears to be murder at this time," said Public Information Officer Larry Rollins of the Garland police. "We don't believe he went there by himself. He couldn't walk 10 miles, especially nude. There was no clothing there."
The parents were publicly ruled out as suspects. The FBI was still assisting in the case, but how is not told publicly. The police also would not comment on whether any physical evidence had been found near the body.
"We had about 35 to 40 responses, and we are checking those out," said Chief Hensely. "But we don't have specific information."
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119877516/kim-nguyen/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
August 1, 1993
The Kerrville Times mentions Kim Nguyen's case and how the community was upset.
"Whoever did it, they have messed with the wrong city, and they will pay for the crime," said Garland Mayor Bob Smith.
"It hurts to know that it turned out like this," said Eric Pierce, a volunteer who wore a t-shirt with Kim's picture.
Three hundred fifty shirts were made with funds from an anonymous donor. *PICTURE OF SHIRTS https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119905000/
August 1 -7, 1993
The Toxicology reports were said to have been concluded this week.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
August 2, 1993 (Monday)
The funeral of Kim Nguyen was attended by volunteers, police officers, Vietnamese community members, and other community members. Many of these people had not met the young boy but had aided the family in the search for him.
"The word child is so precious to us," said Garland Police Chaplain Ken Ashlock, who eulogized.
They had gathered at Williams Chapel, a small chapel on the main street. They listened to the theme song from "The Pink Panther" since this was Kim's favorite.
Then a 30-car motorcade drove to Garland Memorial Park to bury Kim. Fifty people gathered at the gravesite and gave hugs to the family.
"It's not over," said Brenda Thompson, who vowed to hunt for Kim's killer.
"This will all rest in my mind." said volunteer Tom Shane "when the person that did this to Kim is found."
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "Nguyen Funeral" with Mylar as the reporter.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/315/?q=Kim%20Nguyen
August 11, 1993
M.D. Millholland from Dallas, Texas, wrote a shameing article. Expressing anger, the title is "Our Indifference Is Our Shame," They remark about what kind of a society would allow a half-naked boy to stand alone at the end of a road and not help.
"we become a society of voyeuristic paranoids watching "Geraldo and "America's Most Wanted" from the safety and comfort of our living rooms."
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
August 12, 1993
A very tiny excerpt from the papers reports that Garland Crime Stoppers was offering a 1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of an indictment of a suspect of suspects in the murder.
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
August 28, 1993
Crimestoppers increased the reward to 10,000 and asked for information either to them or investigator John McDonald.
https://imgur.com/1IS681d
September 17, 1993
Kim Nguyen and Ashely Estell are mentioned in a "Stranger Danger article."
https://star-telegram.newspapers.com/clip/119878114/
September 5, 1993
Kim Nguyen is briefly mentioned again in September as another missing child case, but this one with a happier ending because the little girl Morgan Littrel was returned home safely. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119906545/
Another case overshadows Kim Nguyen but becomes forever tangled into the cold case and unsolved category together.
Ashley Nicole Estell, seven years old of Dallas, walked away from her parents during a soccer match at Plano's Carpenter Park. Twenty-four hours later, her body was found strangled on a gravel road only six miles from the park. The body location was Highway 121 and Custer Road around noon.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120076097/ashley-nicole-estell/
*Quick note if you are researching as well. Estell is reported from Dallas a few times but sometimes is written as from Plano. Also, Kanon Beltran wrote that this is Plano's first child murder since Christie Proctor in April of 1988.
Very quickly, a comparison is made between the two cases. Police were convinced there was a connection, but there was no connection yet. Plano police had called Garland police about it.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119905813/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119905994/ashley-estell-and-kim-nguyen/
Ashley Estell was presumed kidnapped, so the FBI and Marjorie Poche, Special Agent involved with Nguyen's case, were involved with her case.
https://star-telegram.newspapers.com/clip/119971162/ashley-estelle-and-nguyen-connect/
Eventually, a man was arrested in Estell's case, Michael Blair. The police focused on him immediately and said they witnessed him driving around in the area where Estell was found. There is a good amount of detail in the case focused on just Michael Blair. Most of the pieces are skipped for this article to stay focused on Kim Nguyen.
In 2001 an article mentioned Blair, Estell, and Nguyen briefly stating that Blair was obsessed with child-killer cases.
"Blair admitted that he obsessed about not only Ashley's murder but also about other unsolved child killings in the region, specifically the murders of Christi Lynn Meeks, 5, who was abducted in Mesquite in 1985; Roxann Hope Reyes, 4, abducted in 1987 and found in Murphy, Texas; Jennifer Day, 14, abducted in 1985; and Christie Diane Proctor, 9, abducted in 1986 and found in Plano. (These crimes all occurred when Blair was 15 to 17 years old.) He seemed particularly interested in the specifics of Kim Nguyen, the autistic 8-year-old Garland boy who wandered away from home in 1993. Several days passed before his remains were found near a drainage ditch. Blair admitted driving near that crime scene, too."
https://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-magazine/2001/june/did-this-creep-really-kill-ashley-estell/
The trail went cold for both cases. Finally, it was determined that comparing physical evidence raised doubt that Michael Blair was involved in Nguyen's case.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120319147/aahley-estell-michael-blair-involvement/
Ultimately, no connection was ever panned out, but it breathed a bit of life back into Nguyen's investigation again, prompting some tips to be called to the police.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh8MSYe9YV8
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119906128/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119906210/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119906245/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119906373/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119906275/
https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueCrimeDiscussion/comments/naayen/kim_nguyen_garland_texas_lost_boy_part2_all_the/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120298689/ashley-estell-found-murdered/
"Ashley's Law" was passed, which gave longer sentences to sex offenders and restricted their movements.
Extra Sleuthing:
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120385886/robert-shanklin-sex-offender-in-ashleys/
An article ran in the paper in May of 2015 announcing that before 2000, hair examiners operated without written standards about what was scientific validity. The Justice Department is now acknowledging the bad science. This article mentions Ashley Estell's case and how the weak link in evidence was based on the expert testimony of hair-fiber analysis. The findings were discredited by newly developed DNA technology. Another article states that Michael Blair had been convicted and given the death penalty for the killing but was exonerated (not freed) in 2008 based on that DNA evidence. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120383496/hair-science/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120383849/death-penalty-doubts/
Extra sleuthing:
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120384067/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120384223/ (talks about the fibers/hair specifically)
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120384355/ (updated photo of Blair in 2012)
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120384716/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120386964/dna-tests-michael-blair/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120387200/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120387387/excape-confession-innocence-michael-b/
https://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-magazine/2001/june/did-this-creep-really-kill-ashley-estell/
October 5, 1993
KXAS-TV airs the case marked as "Kim Nguyen Memorial" at five pm.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth439648/m1/185/?q=Kim%20Nguyen
November 2, 1993
Three months out and no updates into the case nor very much news coverage. The cause of death promised, despite the body's condition, still has not been discovered.
"Police keep saying something will come up, but I really don't believe them," said Rudolph Nguyen
Offices at the Dallas County Medical Examiner's office said they are positive someone murdered the boy. "We feel that the death is a homicide," said Dr. Jonie McClain, who performed the autopsy. "But because of the condition of the body, we couldn't determine exactly what caused his death."
The sole investigator on the case is Detective Joe McDonald. "It's extremely frustrating because we don't have anything to do go on." "We have never had a solid lead on this case from the beginning."
Metal Signs were installed permanently, like a stop sign at the site where Kim Nguyen was last seen and where his body was found. They face a lane of traffic and are printed in red and white. A picture of the sign can be seen. It says, "On 07-18-93, Kim Nguyen was abducted from this location and murdered. If you have any information on this offense, please call 205-2086."
At the request of the Garland police family violence unity, the Texas Transportation Department also erected at the body location.
They also clarified that Michael Blair, who was arrested in connection with Ashley Estell, was not connected to Kim. In addition, there was no evidence linking the two deaths.
Mr. Nguyen had quit work over the summer to care for his family since his two other children, Michael and Janmy, had altered their behaviors slightly since their brother disappeared. "Instead of watching cartoons, they watch the news constantly and TV shows such as "America's Most Wanted and Unsolved Mysteries."
Mr. Nguyen said his anger against the police for doing more in the case had mellowed now, but he hopes they catch the killer so that this does not happen to another child.
January 6, 1994
Garland Police noticed that the metal signs installed were missing. Mcdonald, a Garland Police detective, theorized that neighbors stole the sign on Castle Drive because they thought it was a neighborhood blight and needed to sell a house.
*Still locating a hard source for this information
This information came from /u/Rebelscum320's write-up and petition
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/k87cx7/kim_nguyen_garlands_lost_boy/
February 9, 1994
Unsolved Mysteries aired an episode about a little girl named Kimberly, but this episode sometimes is confused with Kim Nguyen's story. Both children have the first name "Kim" and are of Asian descent.
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Kimberly_Karen
https://unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Kim_Nguyen
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/l6n9p1/going_on_a_limb_but_looking_for_an_episode_of/
1994 (Estimated)
Steve Matlick, Garland Texas Police spokesman, said in 1994 that the case would remain open until solved. "If it is never solved, it will never be closed. We don't ever forget."
The lead detective at this time was Detective Bobby Johns, who asked for information to be sent to him or Crimestoppers.
In remembrance, around July, the family asked the community to consider wearing a pink ribbon. This was Kim's favorite color.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Dallas/comments/zykubh/do_any_longtime_dfw_residents_remember_this_cold/
January 15, 1996
Amber Hagerman was kidnapped. Hagerman's murder inspired "AMBER Alerts." her case received much attention. Arlington to Garland is 50 min by car. An article connects the families by similarities and describes how they must understand the unique pain of losing a child. Both parents had heard each other's stories and immediately wondered if their child's killer had gotten another child.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amber_alert
https://archives.dallasnews.com/uncategorized/IO_6b764068-514c-4191-ae21-459e26d23f32/
July 8, 1997
Amber's plan (AMBER ALERT) takes effect for the first time. Jonathan Harrison was the first to have the system used. The only problem was that officers waited for 18 hrs after the child was reported missing to use the plan. The police defended themselves, saying they were following the guidelines.
Later it was determined his death was accidental drowning after he may have tried to jump his bike across a creek. Nonetheless, his death and alerts trigged memories for several area residents who had their children kidnapped and killed.
Mr. Nguyen kept his son's room as it was, except for taking out the furniture and adding photos. The older son Michael was moved out of the room as well. The furniture was removed because Kim did not like it. Mr. Nguyen retreats to the room to grieve. Mr. Nguyen still roams the area streets in his car with a camera looking for anything suspicious. If he finds anything, he calls 911. It comforts him more than counseling. https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
January 17, 1996
Amber's case mentions both Ashley Estell and Kim Nguyen frequently. One notable mention reports that Estell and Nguyen's cases involved sexual offenders. This information has not been confirmed before in Nguyen's case.
https://star-telegram.newspapers.com/clip/120011429/amberkimashley/
2018
A user /u/jeremysbrain, posted about the case. They knew about it since they lived near where his body was found, and he was a high school teen. They report that people thought a serial killer was involved since there had been other abductions.
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/934cn3/25_years_ago_kim_nguyen_disappeared_his_body_was/
June 18, 2019 - 2022
Kanon Beltran, a Writer/Contributor at Memories Of Dallas and Moderator at Dallas History Guild, posts a remembrance post for Kim Nguyen in the group "Memories Of Mesquite" on Facebook. Beltran continued to post about the case for some time and started posting them on important dates. Commentators begin to chime in with their memories. Beltran then begins to ask questions to help enhance the write-up about the case he planned on doing.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/2478196442211620/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/2530873413610589/
On a Facebook memorial, Stacy Auldridge commented that she had driven by the service road where the boy was found.
"It was on the service road at the curve in front of Pet Smart. He was hidden in the tall grass. I drove by there everyday. I feel bad that I didnt see him. 2 kids on bikes found him and went to the convenience store across the street from the UHaul place and called police"
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=2952772401616265&set=gm.3352005594830696
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/2530873413610589/
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=3578500789043420&set=gm.5546310952066805&idorvanity=239305646100722
Beltran asks if anyone remembered an episode of "America's Most Wanted" that featured the case. They had interviewed a relative of Kim's and said they had a copy of the episode, but the "America's Most Wanted" archives had been lost, according to producers. The comments replied that they had thought the episode was actually from "Unsolved Mysteries."
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/3910815675616349/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/2556229964408267/
Beltran asks if anyone was involved in the case in any way because they wanted to interview them. One person chimed in with the possible name of one of the teenage boys who had found the body.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/4512662555431655/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/4408232055874706/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/3846835472014370/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/2268281223203144/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/1992764664088136/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/3388857594478829/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/4679933932037849/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/1974379875926615/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/3895680507129866/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Memoriesofmesquite/permalink/4320936764604236/
2012 - current
u/Rebelscum320 / Kanon Beltran on Reddit started writing and looking for information about Kim Nguyen and his case. They are a Dallas area blog writer with an interest in local cold cases. It is revealed through the petition that user Rebelscum320 is Kanon Beltran. The case caught their attention in 2012, and they began to look into it more. Over time they collect as much publicly available information as possible and become a powerhouse in revitalizing the case. Beltran also has interviewed many people close to the case, including some family members. Most of their work started getting published on Reddit around 2020 and the current time. Their interviews have been cut into the timeline at appropriate moments, but the links to the written works on Reddit are also listed here.
This sparks the interest of locals and web sleuths who had yet to hear about the case. u/Rebelscum320 also makes a petition to restore police interest in the case.
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/sm0c8s/kim_nguyen_the_full_story_of_garlands_forgotten/
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/k87cx7/kim_nguyen_garlands_lost_boy/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Dallas/comments/zykubh/do_any_longtime_dfw_residents_remember_this_cold/
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/kckm43/kim_nguyen_an_undeterminable_cause_of_death/
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/kijl0b/kim_nguyen_part_3_an_interview_with_a_relative/
https://www.change.org/p/garland-police-department-mesquite-police-department-reopen-the-unsolved-case-of-kim-nguyen-aged-8-of-garland-texas-fa52464f-97a8-45ac-b4f9-a4f73993086e
https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueCrimeDiscussion/comments/n81vk1/kim_nguyen_garland_texas_lost_boy_part1_the/
https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueCrimeDiscussion/comments/naayen/kim_nguyen_garland_texas_lost_boy_part2_all_the/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Dallas/comments/zykubh/do_any_longtime_dfw_residents_remember_this_cold/
2023
I reached out to get police reports and other documents that should have been available. However, I was told by high authorities that it was not possible, nor would they tell me why. The same response was given to Beltran.
More about the victim and body condition
Kim Nguyen was born September 22, 1984; his memorial says he died July 19, 1993. Kim was buried in Garland Memorial Park under a beautiful, inspired stone with the pink panther, praying hands, and cross.
"WITH ALL MY LOVE TO
MY SON KIM.
REST IN PEACE"
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/189728005/kim-nguyen
Father Rudolph Nguyen (42) is a local clock repair shop owner. Rudolph would work 14 hours a day, seven days a week. Rudolph Nguyen migrated from South Vietnam to Garland, Texas, in 1981 to Hotsprings, Arkansas. In 1988 with the help of friends, he moved to Garland for the specialized school that would help his son Kim Nguyen who was diagnosed with autism at age one.
Rudolph had apologized for his less-than-perfect English in the papers at one point. He believes what happened to his son is common in America but said it would not shake his confidence in the United States.
However, the man also blamed himself and said that losing his son would haunt him. (Rudolph is also known as Rudy Nguyen)
*PICTURE HERE
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119905000/
Rudolph Nguyen appears in the papers more than his wife, Sarah Nguyen.
"My wife, she's very angry, and it's hard for her to talk about; I know when she's alone in her room, she's thinking about him."
Nguyen also had an older brother, twelve-year-old Michael Nguyen. In addition, Nguyen has a sister Janmy who is also ten years old.
The family is very social. For example, the anon family member recounts home movies where the house is full of guests, and the night before Kim went missing, they had gone out to a family friend's house late. When Kim was missing, the family quickly connected with the community and made close friends like the Thompsons, who would visit them frequently.
Carolyn Dewitt, Kim Nguyen's special education program teacher this summer, said the boy was withdrawn and helpless. Dewitt went on to say, "Mentally, he's like a 2-year-old"
Nguyen could understand English but often did not speak to anyone. Nguyen's father said that his son would hold his hand and guide him to the fridge if hungry. Nguyen's father said he wouldn't have been worried much if Nguyen was a "normal" child, but his son could not take care of himself.
Autism this year was considered a mental disorder involving an inability to express or understand any form of communication. They viewed it as the child "being in their own world."
https://www.newspapers.com/image/589674360/?terms=%22Kim%20Nguyen%22&match=1&clipping_id=119907932
At first, Kim Nguyen is described as uncommunicative with no history of wandering off. Garland Police Lt. Richard Riggs stated this. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119909410/initial-reports/
According to his family, the child had a history of wandering from home. Nguyen had left before from home twice but was found nearby quickly. Once, he was sitting in the family's van, and the other time he was down the street at the stop sign but no further.
A next-door neighbor tells the paper that the boy would leave the family home and wander up the sidewalk four houses to the stop sign at Castle Road. He would stand in the corner and flap his hands like a bird. "I had to walk him back to his house a couple of times," said the neighbor Anne Ortegon. "Otherwise, he would stay there at the stop sign. He wouldn't budge."
Nguyen had a habit of going to the end of the street to the stop sign to stim and watch cars. So the unnamed relative who lived with him wasn't scared when he first disappeared because they assumed he had just gone to this spot.
The family had installed a chain lock at the top of the front door to prevent him from leaving after the first few wanderings. Nguyen had learned to unlock the regular locks.
"I know exactly what is being described. So we kept a chain lock at the top of the door. That's because after Kim learned how to unlock the door, we would run outside and straight to the place you referenced--the end of the street where Castle Drive and Thornhill Lane meet right where the sidewalk ends. Every time. He did this because he was fixated on the passing cars. He LOVED cars. He loved riding in them. He loved watching them move. So seeing these cars whoosh by every time was the most exciting thing to him, screaming in excitement while jumping up and down, waving his arms wildly. He'd stay there forever if we'd let him. Obviously, this was dangerous. Each time the door was wide open, we'd rush out to the end of the street to grab him. It would take multiple people to force him back inside. So that's why the chain lock was added. It worked for a while until he figured out that using a coffee table could help him unlock it. He started getting out again a few days before he was kidnapped." - Relative.
"Kim was still wearing pull-up diapers; he was not potty trained. That said, he hated wearing them and any bottoms (pants, shorts, etc). I suspect he got out of the house by using the coffee table to unlock the door, going to his normal spot, probably bottomless because they only found his shirt. If some pedophile or whatever sociopath saw this autistic boy jumping up and down at the end of the street bottomless, all this person would have to do is open his/her car door, and Kim would not hesitate one second to jump into the car. After all, whenever he wouldn't leave the corner, when we were too exhausted or frustrated to drag him in, we'd get in the car, drive up to get him inside the car, and drive around for a little bit to avoid the fight." - Relative.
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/kijl0b/kim_nguyen_part_3_an_interview_with_a_relative/
Ortegon worries for her two children and fears someone coming back to the area to kill. "I don't know if the killer will be back to this particular area. I mean, if he's come once, I'm sure he will do it again. Maybe now people will start watching their kids a little bit more."
Rudolf Nguyen said, "People work hard and don't have enough time to watch child. They make a little mistake, and they are gone." he also expressed how this mistake "It's cost me the rest of my life."
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902883/kim-nguyens-murder/
Neighbors that lived down the street and participated in the searches had this to say. "It's our neighborhood, and we have kids. Our kids play at the end of the block sometimes." The situation could have easily happened to them, so even though they had never met Nguyen, the whole family helped in the searches.
Medical professionals of the time speculated that it would be unusual for an autistic child to wander far from home. Dr. Warren Weinberg, director of pediatric behavior neurology at Children's Medical Center in Dallas, said [Kim] "would know he's without people he's been with for several years. I would anticipate he would be driven by some notion to try to find where he came from."
While Kim's case was in the news, people in surrounding areas related to the case, Itidal Yousef, a father to a 9-year-old autistic daughter, explained that she would wander off as well. Rawan was not afraid of cars, people, or animals and would strip off her clothes and walk until found. Rawan would always seem to head to a particular grocery store, so thankfully, the times she had left, she had been found quickly. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119916243/
https://www.newspapers.com/image/589674360/?terms=%22Kim%20Nguyen%22&match=1&clipping_id=119907932
Nguyen is eight years old and of Vietnamese descent, and he was last wearing a long blue and brown striped shirt that was later found on a neighborhood street curb about one mile from his home. One source says 1.5 miles. The person who found the shirt was not named and was said to have been without blood, rips, or other evidence. The police called the shirt an alarming discovery, but Rudolph Nguyen was more optimistic because his son was likely to take his clothes off at inappropriate moments, and he hoped this meant they might find his son sooner and in the area. In addition, the shirt was likely the only item Nguyen was wearing because he was not fond of the feeling of any pants or bottoms. Nguyen was not potty-trained and wore pull-ups, but he would also take these off.
Nguyen is described as having dark hair and dark eyes. The cause of death has never been specific, but one news story broadcasted that the FBI said Nguyen might have been strangled, but it was not sure due to the body's condition. Nguyen's body was severely decomposed (sometimes described as only beginning to decompose, partially decomposed, or badly decomposed), and law enforcement could not tell the gender when the body was found. The autopsy report described his body as "mummified" Rigor mortis and livor mortis cannot be determined because of the condition. The body was cool to the touch. The eyes are reported as "absent."
Later, they used dental records to make an identification.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh8MSYe9YV8
They compared antemortem dental with postmortem dental; Robert G. Williams, D.D.S., did this. The teeth are reported as natural, with several restorations having been done.
There are photographs and fingerprints taken of the boy. There were full body X-rays taken. They noted that his hands had not been bagged and that he was received wrapped in a white sheet and plastic bag. There were no clothes or jewelry. The body did have some fire ants and maggots.
Nguyen's body length is 113.0 cm, and he weighs 16 pounds. * Since we do not know where they were measured and what may have been left out, these measurements should not be considered accurate.
There were sections of exposed bone in the upper left chest, exposed clavicles, and ribs, humerus, lower abdominal on the left with an exposed hip. The right upper leg also shows the focal areas of the absence of skin. The back near the neck with exposed vertebrae and the right side of the back showed exposed soft tissue—no injuries on the soles of the feet.
According to the autopsy report, "No evidence of injury."
The bones were studied for defects, but none were identified. The internal organs were absent due to secondary decomposition—no neck organs.
The Toxicology report showed negatives.
Joni L. McClain, M.D. and Karen F. Ross, M.D. and J.K. Townsend-Parchman, M.D. and Juawn-Luis Zamora, M.D., and Sheila Spotswood, M.D. and J.M. Guileyardo, M.D. and Jeffrey J. Barnard Chief Medical Examiner M.D. Chief Medical Examiner and all signed the autopsy report.
They conclude no evidence of injury, yet they list the manner of death: Homicide.
The autopsy report is available, and a copy is provided with courtesy to u/Rebelscum320
https://i.imgur.com/13Aw1k1.png
https://i.imgur.com/0rWPKF3.png
https://i.imgur.com/xhKH84c.png
(Personal note: this autopsy report looks minimal. I have seen many autopsy reports now.)
During the publication of Amber's case, it was reported briefly that both Ashley Estell and Kim Nguyen had the common factor of sexual offenders involved in their cases. Previously, there had been no mention of sexual assault in Kim Nguyen's case.
https://star-telegram.newspapers.com/clip/120011429/amberkimashley/
Kim was a very happy child that loved everyone. He liked to play with his brother and the rest of his family. Kim was not shy, and crowds did not phase him in any way. Though, if anyone tried to communicate with him, Kim would not respond.
His favorite color was pink, and his favorite cartoon character was the Pink Panther. The unnamed family member expanded on this and said it was the musical intro he liked the best, and he would rewind over and over to hear it. Kim also did the same to their favorite sitcom because he wanted to listen to the applauses.
"And whenever my mom went grocery shopping at Sack-N-Save on Buckingham (not there anymore), I would babysit him while he excitedly watched the moving graphics on the arcades (and defend him when the kids there got annoyed with him); we'd have to drag him away from those as well when it was time to go." - Relative.
Kim would communicate his needs by taking the hands of his caregivers and bringing him to what he needed. He would protest about it if it were something he did not want to do. He would protest if it took him away from his focus. Something Kim liked to focus on was spinning coins! Kim also wanted to stand at the end of the street to stim by flapping his arms/hands like a bird. He joins many Autistics with this favorite stim, as hand flapping is common. In addition to the happy hands, Kim would scream with joy and jump down at the corner, looking at the cars.
Kim was also known to fan his fingers out and blow on them while letting his eyes roam.
Stimming is a repetitive movement or sound that is done to self-regulate. Everyone stims, but autistics are likelier to do the stim as a need vs. only as a soothing gesture. Stimming for autistics is done for happiness and all sorts of emotions.
Kim had a particular interest in movement but especially cars. Driving in cars, looking at a car, and so forth. If Kim had been left alone, he would have stayed at the end of the street watching vehicles for as long as anyone would have let him.
Kim also loved to eat pineapple cake. Inside his shared bedroom, he had a few toys, but mostly, he didn't like his furniture. So, after his death, Mr.Nguyen took out all the furniture to honor his son.
Outside of the home Kim attended school and was enrolled in special education. Kim had peers in class and a teacher, but this was his only social group.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119877516/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878050/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878286/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878563/kim-nguyen-searches/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878689/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119879942/kim-nguyen/
https://imgur.com/a/RUrpnq4
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/kijl0b/kim_nguyen_part_3_an_interview_with_a_relative/
In closing, I will leave you with the anonymous relative's words.
"For me personally, it would mean finally being able to lift a little weight off of me. I go through life thinking about what could have been. I get angry knowing whoever did this is pretty much getting away with it, and who knows how many victims there could be with this person. I can't look at his picture a lot of times because I feel like we failed him. I wish for closure, justice, and for this person to just get off the streets so he/she cannot hurt anyone else.
I can't speak for each individual in my family, but I would like to think that my dad would agree with me--to have justice and to get this person off the streets so no one else has to suffer like we have. After all, that's what he kept saying to the reporters and in the newspapers.
Quite some time ago, I recall my brother calling me. He told me that someone from the police department came to speak to my brother and my mom about finding someone who confessed to the crime. He was angry and relieved at the same time. My mom, on the other hand, basically said do what you want with him but don't kill him with the death penalty; for her, I think it's more of the fact that nothing can be undone. It doesn't bring Kim back.
When I last followed up with that detective about the cold case, I had also asked about that situation, thinking if that was true, why didn't I see it in the news yet? He confirmed that the case was still unsolved, and apparently, someone did confess to the crime, but the details he gave did not match anything in the case. They basically assumed he was just a "nut job" already in prison for an unrelated crime who was taking credit for another crime he probably saw on TV at some point. I thought that was odd, but I don't know how common that is for someone to do that. I think my mom and brother still feel that the case is solved because of that visit; I never had the heart to correct them, thinking maybe this is the closure they can just hang on to for a while."
Similar Cases And Violent Crimes In the Area
Ashley Estell, 1993 Dallas Texas
Amber Hagerman, 1996 Arlington Texas
Christi Meeks, 1985 Mesquite Texas
Tyra Heath, 1979
Roxann Reyes, 1987 Garland Texas
May 14, 1993
James Edward Lee was held because he had allegedly disappeared for a day with a ten-year-old autistic boy. Lee was 22 and a state prison parolee working for a home for mentally disabled children.
https://imgur.com/a/vaPDuVv
August 4, 1993
Jason Massey, a murderer of two teens whom he cut their heads and hands off, was charged. Mr. Massey knew the teens. Their bodies were found three days later near a gravel road in rural Telico about 15 miles from their home. The cause of death was gunshot wounds and multiple sharp force injuries.
https://imgur.com/3Jnlzbq
June 14, 1993
Child-killer set free after spending 11 years in jail for the sexual assault and strangled murder of Kendra Page, January 3, 1982 (Austin). Raul Meza Jr. (32) was sentenced to 20 years in prison but was released around June 14, 1993.
Two towns rejected him after he was paroled with protests, and he was moved. There had been much moving around Texas during this time.
Article talking about similar cases in the area
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120425014/texas-child-killings/
July 13, 1993
Meza's whereabouts are unknown as the authorities refuse now to say where he is. This is following Meza being run out of five cities now, which include Uvalde, El Paso County, Wichita Falls, San Antonio, and Mineral Wells. Meza was still in Texas, but authorities hoped to transfer him out of state.
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120301128/child-killer-free/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120301229/child-killer-rejected-in-towns/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120301534/
https://www.nytimes.com/1993/09/05/us/parolee-rejected-all-across-texas.html
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120302828/
Mentions Nguyen
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878114/
Sources repetitive
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878798/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878833/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878822/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119878887/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902344/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902421/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902688/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119902756/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119905287/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119916012/mentions-brief/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119917809/
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1993/07/30/Police-ask-for-publics-help-in-probe-of-childs-death/9254744004800/
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1993/07/19/Search-continues-for-missing-autistic-child/7820743054400/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120290522/kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120290565/kim-ngayens-body-discover/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120294517/kim-nguyen-repeat-article/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120294677/missing-kim-nguyen/
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120298629/kim-nguyen-fbi-joins/
Blogs, Vlogs, Pods, and More
https://web.archive.org/web/20020624033946/http://www.littlestangels1.net/Stories527.html
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/missing87975/unsolved-child-murder-kim-nguyen-t3084.html
https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/archive/index.php/t-176317.html
https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/934cn3/25_years_ago_kim_nguyen_disappeared_his_body_was/
https://www.tumbex.com/rabidrainstorm.tumblr/posts?page=1
List of people involved in Nguyen's Case
The Nguyen extended family's unknown names.
Nguyen's immediate family, Mother Sarah, Father Rudolph, Brother Michael, and Sister Janmy.
Garland Police, 12 academy rookie class, and cadets
Amateur radio operators
Garland Emergency Corps Members
Kristy Parrott, 32, homemaker volunteer
Brady Phipps volunteer
Manuel Ortegon, Kim Ortegon volunteers, and friends /neighbor
Bob Barber, Commander Of Garland Police
Various News reporters: Simms, Mcdonald, Androvett, Marx, Garcia, Kofler, Boswell, Harrell, Mylar, Caldwell,
EDS accounting assistant Sharon Newton Volunteer
John Jay 13-year-old volunteer
Gus Ray, 20, was actively involved and found one shirt volunteer
Nancy Bean, neighbor and volunteer
Gary Richards, Police spokesman
Nina Whitten + three kids volunteer
Diane Sivley
Garland Police Lt. Richard Riggs * early involvement
Steve Frazier Garland Officer * early involvement and organizer of volunteers
Lt. D.J. Martin
Len Pate Volunteer
An unknown male volunteer who found Kim's Shirt Identity not released
Becky Northrop, neighbor and volunteer
FBI / Special Agent Marjoire Poche
Cathy Glenn, son Alex peer of Kim's from school
Centerville Elementary School Kim's School
Brenda Jones, volunteer
George Stanley
Joe Bellino, a lawyer who offered a reward
Jason LaFon volunteer
Shirley Flowers
Harold Malone Voluneeter, horse rider
Arturo Cantu, sone Arturo voluneet
Roger and Nancy Thompson became friends with the Nguyen family after missing
Officer Lana Kirkhalm Garland Detective
Red Cross
Vietnamese leaders
Larry Rollins, Public Information Officer
Police Commander Bob Cortez
Don Stephens (Killer insurance agent who founded First SResponse in 1994) gave a critical quote about the initial search events of Kim's case in a paper in 1996.
An unidentified female neighbor who saw the blazer
Two unknown young boys found Nguyen's body.
A Facebook commenter, Stacy Auldridge, said she saw the location where he had been found then.
Robert Breckenridge, Dallas County Medical Examiner's Office field agent
Michael Blair, a child molester, and the accused murderer was driven by the body scene and was obsessed with the case.
David Emard volunteer + wife Debbie and two kids neighbor
Donna Welch volunteer
Garland Police Chief Terry Hensley
Unknown volunteers from Fort Worth, Arlington
Bill Lene, an official with Dallas County Medical Examiners
Carolynn Dewitt Nguyen's special education program teacher
Anne Ortegon *a neighbor who walked Nguyen back from the stop sign, often
Eric Pierce
Garland Mayor Bob Smith
Brenda Thompson vowed to hunt for Kim's killer
Tom Shane volunteer
M.D. Millholland, from Dallas, Texas, chastised the community via newspaper letter for allowing the little boy to be taken.
Garland Crime Stoppers
John/ Joe McDonald Investigator
Dr. Jonie McClain performed the autopsy
Steve Matlick, Garland Police Spokesman
Detective Bobby Johns
Dr. Warren Weinberg, director of pediatric behavior neurology at Children's Medical Center in Dallas
Itidal Yousef commenter on the case because he has an autistic daughter who would wander off
Robert G. Williams, D.D.S. dental postmortem dental
Joni L. McClain, M.D. and Karen F. Ross, M.D. and J.K. Townsend-Parchman, M.D. and Juawn-Luis Zamora, M.D., and Sheila Spotswood, M.D. and J.M. Guileyardo, M.D. and Jeffrey J. Barnard Chief Medical Examiner M.D. Chief Medical Examiner and all signed the autopsy report.
/u/jeremysbrain, a reddit user who first posted about the case when he was a teen that lived near where the body was found.
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