83-year-old woman continued
It was early evening on Sept. 13 when the attack occurred. Nguyen had been collecting plastic bottles and cans in her Forest Park neighborhood, a task she'd done countless times out of a mother's desire to send money back to her only son in Vietnam.
She had no money on her at the time. "I had nothing for him to take away," said Nguyen, a parishioner of Holy Name Church who also attends Vietnamese services at St. Paul the Apostle Church.
Police arrested William A. Pepe, 38, of 35 Avon Place, and charged him with assault and battery on a person over 60 with serious bodily harm in connection with the attack.
Police described Pepe as a "known street person" and said his arrest was made quickly as a result of descriptions given by passersby who came to Nguyen's aid and called 911.
Pepe pleaded innocent on Sept. 14 in District Court. He is being held in lieu of $100,000 cash bail at the Hampden Country Correctional Center in Ludlow. A pre-trial conference is set for Oct. 6.
Nguyen came to this country from Vietnam in 1992, first to live in Iowa with her daughter who married an American serviceman who had served in Vietnam during the war. Nguyen moved to Springfield to be near her younger sister, Tho Nguyen, 75, and niece, Tammy Nguyen, 45, with whom she had lived in Vietnam.
"She is a tough lady," said Tammy Nguyen of her aunt. "She defended herself against someone who just walked right up to her and tried to choke her."
"She is not one to sit still. She likes to walk around and was almost home on the day of the attack," Tammy Nguyen added.
She also said her aunt, whose English is limited, had been reluctant to have hip surgery but was persuaded by family and by the fact her hospital roommate had successfully undergone a similar operation.
Despite missing her daughter, Xuan Nguyen said she has liked her life in Springfield, where she has her own apartment and Vietnamese-speaking family members who are at home during the day.
"I get up and pray and fix a little something to eat and then garden," she said. "It makes me happy to take care of my plants."
Has the attack changed things for her? "I like it here and want to stay, but I am so discouraged. Something like this never happened to me before," Nguyen said.
