MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — Hai Vu and Lindsay Ma were in Miami-Dade County court on Monday for the sentencing hearing of the man who confessed to killing their 10-year-old son in 2013.
Anthawn Ragan shot and killed 10-year-old Aaron after a burglary at the Hong Kong Nail Salon in North Miami, which Vu and Ma co-owned, records show.
In court, Vu told Circuit Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez, his voice nearly breaking, that he has been praying the “Our Father” for the past 12 years.
“I forgive you, I know that’s what my son would have wanted me to do,” Vu told Ragan in court.
Ragan pleaded guilty last month to charges of armed robbery, aggravated assault, murder, and attempted murder.
“They came in loud, cursing, and said, ‘Give us the money!’”
Aaron and his two siblings were there with their parents.
“We did what they said,” Ma said. “And, after they took the money, I heard a BOOM! BOOM!”
Ragan fired two shots on his way out. He also wounded Vu.
" I can’t explain to you the pain, your honor," Vu told the judge.
Ragan waived his right to a jury trial for the penalty phase, leaving the judge to determine his sentence.
Attorney Tony Moss, who defended Ragan, asked the judge to spare his life, arguing that Ragan had endured a childhood plagued with poverty, mental health issues, and run-ins with the law.
“The defendant was the menace of Northwest Seventh Avenue, robbing people, killing people ... a reign of terror until he got caught,” Assistant State Attorney Scott Warfman said, arguing in support of the death sentence.
Ragan, 31, marked his 19th birthday when Miami-Dade corrections booked him in 2013. He was already sentenced to life in prison last year over the murder of 21-year-old Luis Perez at Motel 7 in North Miami.
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