Former UC Irvine student throws mother off campus building and then jumps himself, police say

A former University of California, Irvine student threw his 77-year-old mother to her death from a campus building and then jumped himself, police said Wednesday.

The bodies of Thao Thai Nguyen and her 36-year-old son Andrew Nguyen Doan, both of Irvine, were found Tuesday afternoon at Social Science Plaza B, police said.

Investigators determined that Doan picked up his mother and threw her from a landing before jumping, a police statement said.

Doan was a biological sciences major at UC Irvine from September 2017 to June 2019 but he didn’t graduate, UCI spokesman Tom Vasich told the Los Angeles Times.

Police had contacted him several times in the past. The last time was in 2019 and involved “mental health concerns,” the statement said.

Investigators were trying to determine a motive for the murder-suicide, police said.

Chancellor Howard Gillman said the university was “fully cooperating” with the police investigation. 

“At such a time, our primary thoughts are with the victims and their families,” he said in a statement. “But there are also members of the UCI community who have been contacted to assist with the investigation and to share their knowledge of what may have happened.”

If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or suicidal crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or dial 988.

For more information about mental health care resources and support, The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) HelpLine can be reached Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m. ET, at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or email info@nami.org.