Child calling 911 leads to conviction, prison sentence for MS Coast habitual offender

A Mississippi Coast man will spend 25 years in prison after a Jackson County jury convicted him on Tuesday in the burglary and attempted assault of his former girlfriend.

The jury took less than 30 minutes to convict Tommy Tien Vu, 35, of burglary of a dwelling with intent to commit an assault, the District Attorney’s office said in a news release Wednesday. The state prosecuted Vu as a habitual criminal and he was also convicted of domestic violence related to the incident.

Circuit Court Judge Keith Miller sentenced Vu to the maximum term with no chance for early release or parole, the news release said.

The case began in July 2022, when Jackson County Sheriff’s deputies responded to an apartment on Cimarron road after a child called 911.

The deputies found the door kicked open, the release said. Vu was inside and tried to assault his former girlfriend and her new boyfriend. The apartment belonged to the former girlfriend and their two children, according to the release.

Vu never lived at the apartment, authorities said. He took the victim’s phone and one of the children found another to call 911, according to the release.

Vu resisted arrest but deputies took him into custody, the release said.

“This was undoubtedly a terrifying situation that could have been much worse but for the quick thinking of a child and the swift response from the Jackson County Sherrif’s Deputies,” District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath said in the release. “I hope that this conviction and Judge Miller’s maximum sentence gives the victim peace of mind knowing that her abuser will be away for a very long time.”

Assistant District Attorneys Bill Barrett and Justin Lovorn prosecuted the case.