Within days, the leader of the 5T gang, 21-year-old Tri Minh Tran became the prime suspect. A local club owner, Phuong Ngo's conflict with Newman and his close ties to Tran led to widespread rumours in the community that he was involved and the media repeated the allegations. Tran, who had led the gang since the age of 14, was assassinated on 7 August 1995. On the afternoon of his funeral, Cabramatta shopkeepers closed their shops as a sign of respect, an honour they had not given to Newman. Ngo attended the funeral and he now became the focus of police attention after one of Tran's relatives made a statement to police that Tran had rejected an offer of $10,000 from Ngo to kill Newman.
