Federal agencies suspend bank accounts for VAS, Perfume River and Peter Pham

Federal authorities have frozen the bank accounts for Viet America Society (VAS), the nonprofit at the center of a high-profile controversy over what happened to millions of taxpayer dollars, according to reporting from the Orange County Register.

What we know so far

Mark Rosen, the attorney for VAS, told the Register the feds also suspended accounts for Peter Pham, the founder of Viet America Society, and Perfume River Restaurant and Lounge. Perfume River is located at the Asian Garden Mall in Westminster, and had been used by VAS for meal preparation funded by the county, according O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do and others connected to the funding.

According to the Register, Rosen said because of “grandstanding by the county, people are going to starve” following the suspension of the accounts. Supervisor Katrina Foley told the Register that county staff can help connect residents to other services, such as enrolling in CalFresh.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office said they had no comment.

LAist has also reached out to Rosen and Foley, as well as spokespeople for the FBI and IRS. We'll update this story as we get more information.

The backstory

Earlier this month, Orange County officials filed a pair of lawsuits alleging more than $13 million in public funds Supervisor Do directed to a nonprofit linked to his daughter, VAS, were misspent following a months-long LAist investigation into the money. Officials allege the money was “plundered” by Supervisor Do’s 23-year-old daughter Rhiannon Do and others for private gain, including home purchases.

Supervisor Do directed the money to the nonprofits to prep and deliver hot meals to seniors, people with disabilities and others facing food insecurity in his district. An LAist investigation revealed that the nonprofit was two years late in completing audits to show if the funds were spent on meals.

Last week, agents from the FBI and IRS searched Supervisor Do’s North Tustin home, as well as a nearby home owned by Rhiannon Do. Perfume River Restaurant and Lounge, as well as the home of Pham, were also searched.

Catch up on LAist's investigation

In November 2023, LAist began investigating how millions in public taxpayer dollars were spent. In total, LAist has uncovered over $13 million in public money was approved to a little-known nonprofit that records state was led on and off by Rhiannon Do, the now 23-year-old daughter of Supervisor Do. Most of that money was directed to the group by Supervisor Do outside of the public’s view and never appeared on public meeting agendas. He did not publicly disclose his family ties.

Much of the known funding came from federal coronavirus relief money.

• Read the story that launched the investigation here.
• Since we started reporting, we’ve also uncovered the group was two years overdue in completing a required audit into whether the meal funds were spent appropriately.
• And we found the amount of taxpayer money directed to the nonprofit was much larger than initially known . It totals at least $13.5 million in county funding — tallied from government records obtained and published by LAist.
• After our reporting, O.C. officials wrote demand letters to the nonprofit saying millions in funding were unaccounted for. They warned it could be forced to repay the funds.
• And, we found the nonprofit missed a deadline set by county officials to provide proof about how funding for meals were spent.
• On Aug. 2, LAist reported O.C. officials were demanding the refund of more than $3 million in public funds awarded by Do to VAS and another nonprofit, Hand to Hand.
• Six days later, LAist reported Orange County officials had expanded demands for refunds of millions in tax dollars from the nonprofits and threatened legal action.
• On Aug. 15, LAist reported O.C. officials sued VAS and its key officers and associated businesses, including Rhiannon Do . The lawsuit alleges that county money was illegally used to purchase five homes and was converted into cash through ATM transactions.
• Then, on Aug. 19, LAist reported O.C. officials had announced a second lawsuit against Hand to Hand and its CEO to recover millions of taxpayer dollars that were directed by Supervisor Do.
• LAist broke the news on Aug. 22 that federal agents were searching Rhiannon Do's home in Tustin. Later that day, Supervisor Do's home, and other properties, were also raided.