TEEN HAD T-SHIRT, DEATH PROBE TOLD

Article Of Clothing Has Not Been Recovered

The city cop who saw Huu Pham plunge to his death during a police raid told
a fatality inquiry yesterday that the boy was wearing a T-shirt - a piece
of evidence forensic experts have never recovered.

"I remember that very clearly," said city police dog handler Const. Dave
Monson, referring to the plunge.

"I thought the Asian man had on black sweat pants and a T-shirt."

The inquiry is looking into the deaths of Pham, 15, and Adam Miller, 21,
who died Sept. 24, 1999, when they plunged from a fourth-floor balcony at
12925 65 St. Monson was near the cop who lobbed a flash-bang device towards
the balcony.

"I saw the motion and I knew what was happening, but I wasn't watching him
do it, only through my peripheral vision." He was not in a position to see
the balcony, he said.

City police forensics Const. Steve Jones said Thursday he was given a bag
of Pham's personal items to take as evidence, but that bag didn't contain a
T-shirt. Jones testified he sent the pants he found in the bag, which was
open, to an RCMP lab for tests.

The pants were examined for traces of flash-bang residue, but the results
were inconclusive, the inquiry heard.

Monson told the inquiry he was in a carport under the building during the
raid. A couple of seconds after the flash-bang went off, he saw Pham and
Miller hit the pavement. Pham landed closest to him, he said.

"I only saw the last eight or 10 feet of the fall," he said. "I thought we
had two people trying to escape."

Monson said he quickly realized they were seriously injured and as other
officers arrived, he backed off. He then returned the dog to his car.

Other than when he talked to his lawyer recently, Monson said yesterday was
the first time he has been officially asked about what he saw. He said he
wasn't interviewed by homicide detectives, although he knew about an
investigation.

Const. Mike Garth said at the inquiry yesterday he remembered Pham wore
only pants - no shirt. Garth is now a city police officer, but was a
tactical paramedic on the raid.

"I asked two of the (city police) members to start cutting off his clothes
so I could assess his injuries," said Garth.

"If he was wearing pants and a T-shirt, everything would have been cut off."

Garth admitted during questioning by Tom Engel, lawyer for the Miller
family, that he was advised before testifying that the absence of Pham's
shirt was an issue at the inquiry.

"In terms of clothing, I don't know what happened to the clothing," said Garth.

The inquiry also heard from Det. Brian Serbin, a city police officer who
was aboard the RCMP chopper that was in the air during the raid. He said
the helicopter was hovering northwest of the city when the raid was launched.

"Categorically, we were not at the site when this would have transpired,"
he said.