Body found in Oakland-Alameda estuary ID'd as murder victim through DNA testing
The body found in Oakland-Alameda Estuary in Sept. was confirmed by DNA testing to be that of Que Thi Tran, 74, who was killed by her son-in-law Phuc Vo, according to San Pablo Police Department.
SAN PABLO, Calif. - A body that was found in the Oakland-Alameda estuary last September has been identified as that of a woman who was killed by her son-in-law, San Pablo police say.
Officials on Tuesday said the identity of 74-year-old Que Thi Tran was confirmed through DNA testing from evidence collected in March. Also on Tuesday, law enforcement agencies cooperated to conclude coordinated search efforts near the area where Tran's body was recovered from the City of Alameda.
Last month, it was reported that Phuc Vo, a San Pablo man, who had reported his wife and mother-in-law, missing back in September, was charged with their murders. Vo, 41, was charged by the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office with two counts of murder.
Police say the body of Vo's wife, 40-year-old Tho Ngoc Ly, has not been recovered. Officials did not say how the victims were killed and had no further information to share about Tuesday's search.
San Pablo police said they took Vo's report of his wife and her mother's disappearance from the 1900 block of Sutter Avenue on Sep. 12. They were reported to have left in their 2017 Honda Fit to Southern California after an argument with family members. Police could not corroborate this information as investigators found inconsistencies with what Vo told police.
Police said leads helped them locate the Honda in Oakland at an industrial park and that the suspect was caught in a lie after the vehicle was put under surveillance. Surveillance footage shows Vo moving the vehicle just hours after telling police he didn't know where the vehicle was.
Officials said this case is an active and open investigation. City of Alameda, Alameda County Sheriff's Office, East Bay Regional Parks Police Department, CalOES and Contra Costa County D.A.'s Office investigators were thanked for Tuesday's search efforts.