Police: Man, 84, killed son for refusing to pay for cable TV

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - An 84-year-old man allegedly shot and killed his son Monday because he refused to pay to install cable television in their home, reports CBS Minnesota.

Pang Se Vang faces second-degree murder charges in the shooting death of his 36-year-old son, Chue Vang.

According to criminal charges filed Thursday, the suspect's wife, two sons and infant grandchild were also at the home in suburban St. Paul when the shooting occurred. Police spoke with the victim's eldest brother, who said he was sleeping upstairs when his mother woke him to tell him what happened, reports CBS Minnesota. He reportedly went downstairs and found his brother, Chue, who was bleeding and appeared to be dead.

The brother told police that his father then came out of a bedroom holding a shotgun. After a struggle during which the gun discharged into the ceiling, the victim's brother was able to wrestle the gun away from the suspect, according to the charges. His father retreated back into the bedroom and closed the door. The son called 911 and left the home, taking the rifle with him.

When police arrived at the scene, an officer shouted to the father to come out of the bedroom with his hands up. The suspect responded that he could not come out because he stabbed himself in the chest, the charges state. He allegedly confessed to the officer that he had shot his son.

The complaint states that Pang Vang said he had stabbed himself because he "did not want to settle the issue in court. He would settle the dispute with his son when they reached the afterlife."

The Ramsey County SWAT team then entered the home and located the suspect in the bedroom, according to CBS Minnesota. Police said he was on the bed, covered in blood, with a large, black-handled knife near his hand. The suspect was taken to the hospital, where he was treated for stab wounds to his neck and abdomen. He was formally arrested on Wednesday.

Chue Vang was pronounced dead at the scene, the station reports.

CBS Minnesota reports that police called the suspect's pastor. The pastor said Pang Vang called him shortly before the shooting, upset that his son wouldn't pay to install cable television in the home they shared, according to the complaint. The pastor said that, during the argument, Chue Vang told his father that he could move out of the house.

"What is alleged in the report is over a trivial thing and perhaps there were lots of things that were kind of building up and that led to this extraordinary criminal act of violence," said Ramsey County Attorney John Choi.

Pang Vang is being held on a $1 million bond, CBS Minnesota reports. He is the oldest person charged with murder in Ramsey County the last 30 years, and, if convicted, could face up to 40 years in prison.

The family told the station that Chue Vang will be buried on April 3.