The parents of a 13-year-old boy killed in an Orange County e-bike crash are now facing criminal charges for allegedly letting him ride the powerful vehicle illegally.
Vu Thanh Nguyen, 56, and Hong Cuc Thi Nguyen, 49, both of Santa Ana, were charged after their son Benson Nguyen died on May 7 in Garden Grove. The teen had been traveling at 43 mph on his E-Moto when he slammed into a concrete light pole, according to prosecutors. He was rushed to UCI Medical Center, where he died.
The E-Ride Pro SS 2.0 that Benson was riding is classified as a motorcycle under California law, meaning it requires a driver’s license and proper DMV registration. Prosecutors said the teen had been running red lights, speeding and popping wheelies on the high-powered bike before the fatal crash.
The charges carry starkly different potential penalties for each parent. If convicted on all counts, the father faces up to six years in California state prison, while the mother could spend up to a year in county jail.
The father had purchased an even faster, more powerful bike for his son despite a warning sign just six months earlier, authorities said. Benson had broken his leg in a separate accident on another bike, yet the upgrade still came.
“When parents refuse to hold their children accountable and that refusal to parent results in unspeakabletragedy, then I have no choice but to hold parents accountable,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer wrote in a release.
The case lands amid what authorities describe as a ballooning crisis across Southern California. Electric bikes and motorcycle-style E-Motos have been tied to a wave of serious injuries and deaths, with particular danger to young riders who may not grasp the power of the machines.
“More than 125 deaths have been attributed to E-Bikes and E-Motos in the United States,” Spitzer’s release added. “E-Bike and E-Moto injuries are now the number one reason children in Orange County end up in the emergency room, with injuries skyrocketing more than 430% in Southern California in just the last four years.”
The Nguyen family has received an outpouring of community support in the wake of their loss. A GoFundMe created for Benson has raised over $7,100 of its $7,500 goal.
The crash that killed Benson Nguyen came after repeated risky behavior on the E-Moto, prosecutors said, with the teen documented running red lights, speeding and performing wheelies on the streets of Garden Grove. The collision with the concrete light pole occurred while he was traveling at 43 mph, far beyond the capability of a standard bicycle and in a vehicle requiring full motorcycle licensing that the 13-year-old did not possess.