Buckeye man indicted for kidnapping, raping teens at gunpoint

A Buckeye man was indicted using decades-old DNA evidence April 9 for sex crimes against juvenile teenagers.

Last month, the Maricopa County Attorney's Office announced the indictment of 45-year-old Dat Vu, in connection with kidnapping and sexual assaults between 2000 and 2005.

Vu, a Westpark Buckeye resident, lived less than a half mile from Westpark Elementary School, according to the sex offender registry.

The victims' ages ranged from 13 to 17 when the crimes were committed. During two incidents, Vu allegedly threatened victims with a gun to coerce them into submission.

None of the incidents occurred in Buckeye.

The most recent allegation stems from a 2005 incident after Vu was convicted of a previous attempted sexual assault. As a registered sex offender on probation, Vu allegedly invited a 17-year-old to his hotel room, according to a court document reviewed by InBuckeye.

“She agreed to come up to the defendant's hotel room," an officer wrote. "Once in the hotel room, the defendant demanded sex, using a gun on the nightstand as a threat when the victim refused. He then demanded oral sex and she obeyed."

Vu later denied knowing the victim, in a December interrogation.

Officers, however, corroborated the victim’s December account through a decades-old hotel guest list, which identified Vu as a guest in room 312. Caller ID records from the hotel room to the victim’s phone also confirmed accounts, according to court documents.

Cases before Vu's guest list victim

Vu was first arrested in 2001 on charges of sexual assault and abuse of a minor for a 2000 incident. Vu was convicted for a lesser charge of attempted rape of a 14-year-old. He was sentenced to probation, according to an analysis of court and corrections documents.

"In 2001, the defendant was arrested for sexual conduct with a minor, sexual assault, and sexual abuse," an officer wrote, in court docs. "He was found guilty of attempted sexual assault, served 3.5 years for revoked probation, and was placed on probation with sex offender registration."

Arizona Department of Corrections records suggest the earliest year Vu was entered into prison was 2006, for identity theft. Later in 2007, Vu was convicted of theft related to forgery. ADOC documents suggest that after those prison terms, he started a 2013 sentence for probation violation related to his 2001 attempted sexual assault. Records also indicate he assaulted an inmate in 2009 while in prison.

An officer suggested there may have been difficulty locating or communicating with the first victim after the initial sexual assault report, according to court document narratives. It's unclear if that was key to a plea deal for Vu. Decades later, an investigator was able to track down the victim in the county jail to corroborate her initial sexual assault account.

In 2001, before his November sentencing for the attempted sexual assault, a 13-year-old victim also reported an alleged rape in March by a man known to her as Alex, a nickname Vu used. Law enforcement detailed the incident in a court document reviewed by InBuckeye.

“She said Alex pulled out a gun and threatened to shoot her if she did not come with him. She said Alex and two other people drove her to an abandoned building in Glendale where he tied her hands and feet. Removed her clothing, had sexual intercourse with her twice," they wrote. "She said she told him she did not want to have sex with him. There was a DNA match to the defendant.”

Another 16-year-old victim alleged he raped her at his home in 2001, after picking her up from her home when her parent was away. Court documents do not clearly explain why the defendant wasn't arrested at his home. It is possible the teen did not know where the house was or felt threatened after recently meeting him online.

Nearly 25 years later, prosecutors tied DNA found on the victims to Vu, who presumably registered as a sex offender in 2001, for his "attempted" sexual assault.  Victims also identified Vu positively through a photo lineup years later.

Rachel Mitchell, the current county attorney, credited the discovery to the MCAO Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI). In December, the office was awarded $2.5 million for testing, through SAKI, for cold case sex assaults statewide, training, and providing investigative support to law enforcement.

"SAKI grants help us take a crucial step toward closure by providing the resources necessary to process sexual assault kits,” said Mitchell in a press release. “It’s not only about solving these cases but restoring hope and giving victims the long-overdue justice they deserve.”

Mitchell was recognized in 2003 by then-Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano as the "Outstanding Arizona Sexual Assault Prosecutor of the Year."