| For Immediate Release Case # 12WF0241
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Susan Kang Schroeder Chief of Staff Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami |
LAW ENFORCEMENT SEEKS PUBLIC’S HELP IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL ADDITIONAL VICTIMS OF FORMER HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL COACH CHARGED WITH UNLAWFUL SEX WITH 14-YEAR-OLD STUDENT
WESTMINSTER – Law enforcement is seeking the public’s help identifying potential additional victims of a former high school basketball coach charged with having an ongoing unlawful sexual relationship with a student beginning when she was 14 years old. John Tran Nguyen, 21, Fountain Valley, is charged with one felony count of unlawful sexual intercourse and one misdemeanor count of domestic violence battery. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of three years in state prison. Nguyen is out of custody on $20,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned Feb. 23, 2012, at 8:30 a.m. in Department W-14, West Justice Center, Westminster.
During the 2010-2011 basketball season, Nguyen was a contract assistant girls’ basketball coach at Los Amigos High School in Fountain Valley. He is accused of meeting 14-year-old Jane Doe while she was a student at the school. The defendant is accused of grooming Jane Doe and taking her out on dates.
In December 2010, Nguyen is accused of having unlawful sex with the victim in his vehicle. Over the course of the next year, he is accused of having an ongoing sexual relationship with Jane Doe.
In January 2012, Nguyen is accused of slapping the victim during an argument in his vehicle while they were parked outside of a convenience store off campus before school hours. When Jane Doe went to school, she reported to school officials that she had been slapped.
School officials contacted the Fountain Valley Police Department (FVPD), who investigated this case and subsequently learned about the ongoing unlawful sexual relationship. Nguyen was arrested by FVPD Jan. 20, 2012.
Anyone with additional information or who thinks they have been a victim is encouraged to contact FVPD Detective Jesse Hughes at (714) 593-4480 or Supervising District Attorney Investigator Lou Gutierrez at (714) 347-8794.
Deputy District Attorney Angela Hong of the Sexual Assault Unit is prosecuting this case.
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