UPDATE: Murder charges filed in a Memphis, TN Juvenile Court against a 37-year old Murfreesboro man

Jun 19, 2014 at 02:42 pm by bryan


We have more news on the Murfreesboro man who was arrested on a warrant charging him with the 1994 murder and robbery of a woman in Memphis, Tennessee.

WGNS news reported on Wednesday that the murder charges against 37-year old Phanksay Phanivong were dropped. That information was confirmed by the Shelby County General Sessions Courts of Memphis, Tennessee. We then learned from Phanivong’s fiance, that the charges are now in the hands of the Shelby County Juvenile Courts. The change was made because at the time of the murder, he was only 16-years old. The General Sessions courts did not have that information, because it is sealed due to his age when the crime was allegedly committed.

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Phanivong, who goes by the nickname of “Kapoo,” has been accused of killing Angela Perkins at a busy Shelby County intersection in 1994. Perkins was shot while driving her RX-7 (Mazda) down Mendenhall Road in Memphis on Valentine’s Day. 23-Year old Perkins was shot shortly after leaving Newby's, a local bar and grill where she worked. 

We spoke to Monica Hunt on Thursday and we did not ask her if she thought her fiancé was guilty or innocent. Instead, we ask Ms. Hunt to describe Phanivong’s character.

Hunt told us that the person who gave Phanivong’s name to detectives in Memphis, is currently incarcerated in Texas on murder charges. She told us the information did not come from a reliable source. According to a copy of the arrest warrant that WGNS obtained, “Witness stated he saw “Kapoo” shoot the victim one time while trying to take her vehicle.” 

The story then got more confusing as we learned that Phanivong is actually married to someone else and not Ms. Hunt.

We then spoke to Ashley Phanivong, who told us that she is still married to Phanksay Phanivong. In fact, even though Phanivong has been with Ms. Hunt for the past three years, Ashley has been legally married for the past 7-years. 

Ashley Phanivong stated, "We are still legally married. Phanivong never had 50% custody of our child together, because we are still married. Monica Hunt does not have any custody privileges of our child."  

He is currently behind bars in Memphis awaiting his next court date which will be in a closed Juvenile Court session on July 23, 2014.

Hear the full 4 min. and 23 sec. statement by Monica Hunt:

The previously issued arrest warrant for Phanivong stated: 

A witness came forward and stated that he witnessed the shooting and the persons responsible.  He described the events that happened that were confirmed from the evidence located on the scene.  Witness stated he saw “Kapoo” shoot the victim one time while trying to take her vehicle.  “Kapoo” was identified in a photo by the witness.  Kapoo’s real name is Phanhsay Poo Phanivong and known by the witness.  Witness stated that he did not come forward because he and his family were threatened by Phanivong.

Click here to download the full arrest warrant.

Below is a photo of Angela Perkins, the murder victim:

 

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