Hearing postponed in south Wichita capital murder case

A court hearing for a Wichita man accused of gunning down his girlfriend and two of her family members has been postponed.

Vinh Van Nguyen, who is charged with capital murder, had been scheduled for a preliminary hearing Tuesday in Sedgwick County District Court, but the date was moved to Oct. 28 at the request of Nguyen’s attorneys, according to district court records.

The continuance is the second granted for the preliminary hearing. At such proceedings, a judge hears testimony and determines whether there is sufficient evidence to bind a defendant over for trial on the crimes charged.

Nguyen, 41, also faces three alternative counts of first-degree murder in the case.

Nguyen is charged in slayings of his girlfriend, 45-year-old Tuyet T. Huynh, and Trinh and Sean Pham, 20 and 21, at their home at 2207 S. Beech around midnight on June 24. The younger couple were Huynh’s daughter and son-in-law.

Police at the time said officers found Huynh dead in the master bedroom of the house. Sean Pham was found dead in the hallway and his wife, Trinh, dead in the a basement bedroom. The Phams’ 5-month-old son was found unharmed in the house that night.

Nguyen remains in Sedgwick County Jail on $2 million bond. If convicted of capital murder, he faces either life in prison without parole eligibility or the death penalty.

This story was originally published September 30, 2014 at 7:10 PM with the headline "Hearing postponed in south Wichita capital murder case."