22-04-2025
Kidnap and murder of Bankstown mum linked to partner's alleged drug gang ties, police say
The 45-year-old mother of two who was kidnapped and killed in Sydney's south was targeted due to her partner's alleged links to drug manufacturers, police have revealed.
In one of Sydney's most disturbing killings, Thi Kim Tran was kidnapped from her Bankstown home by a group of up to five masked men last Thursday night.
She was stripped naked and forced into the back of a dark SUV at gunpoint.
Her body was later found in a burnt-out vehicle in Beverly Hills, about 6km away from her home.
NSW Police said on Tuesday that Tran's partner was allegedly involved in an Organised Criminal Network (OCN) based in Victoria — a group believed to be responsible for large-scale drug manufacturing.
Detective Superintendent Joe Doueihi said the quantity involved was more than just tonnes, but a considerable amount.
At the time of the horrific crime, the man was interstate in Victoria on a work trip for the group.
Doueihi said he was known to police for minor drug-related offences and had allegedly been working with the network for several months.
Police believe a conflict between the man and his superior in the network may have been the motive behind the brutal killing.
Following the revelations, Victoria Police raided an alleged drug lab in Springdallah on Saturday, where they seized items consistent with the manufacturing of methamphetamine.
No arrests were made from the raid, and while Tran's partner has not been charged, he is cooperating with the investigation.
The couple's two children remain in hospital under police guard, with the younger boy expected to suffer lifelong complications as a result of his injuries.
The eight-year-old was struck with a baseball bat by the group of men, and police said he had done nothing to provoke the attack at the time.
He was placed in an induced coma following surgery.
Doueihi said Tran and her two children 'had no knowledge' of the man's involvement with the group.
With no known family members in Australia, police are now working to contact Tran's relatives in Vietnam.
Doueihi added that while most members of the group were 'mainly Vietnamese males', there was no evidence linking them to wider South-East Asian crime syndicates.
'These offences are clearly targeted offences … against innocent people,' Doueihi said.
'This level of violence against innocent family members is rare and unprecedented.'
Police are urging anyone who witnessed the crime or has information about those involved, either in NSW or Victoria, to come forward.
