On a quiet Friday in early October 2025, the small community near Victoria, Texas, was shaken by a violent crime that would soon draw national attention and highlight deep cracks in the U.S. immigration and criminal justice systems. Federal authorities charged Savin "Two Face" Seng, a 41-year-old Cambodian national and admitted gang member, with being an alien in possession of a firearm after he was arrested on suspicion of murdering 47-year-old Charminy Lewis. Seng, who is also wanted for a 2022 murder in California, now sits in federal custody as investigators and policymakers grapple with the troubling details of his case.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the chain of events began on October 3, 2025, when local authorities responded to a house near Victoria, Texas, where a woman had been shot in the head. The victim, later identified as Charminy Lewis, was found dead at the scene. Investigators quickly discovered a cell phone at the house, which contained photographs of Seng holding a handgun. Within a mile of the crime scene, officers apprehended Seng as he attempted to flee. During the arrest, they recovered a loaded Glock 17 handgun with an extended magazine—evidence that would become central to the federal charges against him.
As reported by Breitbart News and The Daily Wire, Seng’s arrest did not come as a surprise to law enforcement agencies already familiar with his violent past. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents joined the case after Seng’s apprehension and quickly confirmed that he was also wanted in California for the 2022 murder of 20-year-old Gabriel Isiguzo outside a North Hills strip club. According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and contemporaneous reports, that killing was described as "unprovoked," though some accounts suggested it began as an argument over a handicapped parking spot.
Chad Plantz, Special Agent in Charge at HSI Houston, praised the rapid coordination among law enforcement. "Within just 36 hours, the law enforcement community in Southeast Texas banded together leveraging our various resources to successfully locate him and safely take him into custody before he could harm anyone else," Plantz stated in comments shared with The Daily Wire.
The details of Seng’s criminal history are as troubling as they are extensive. Court records cited by The Daily Wire reveal a rap sheet that includes two convictions for burglary and single convictions for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, felon in possession of a firearm, and domestic violence. Seng entered the United States lawfully in 1984 as a child, but his repeated brushes with the law culminated in a federal order for removal in April 2016. Despite serving prison time for his crimes, Seng was not deported after his release.
Why wasn’t Seng removed from the country after his 2016 deportation order? The answer, as ICE officials explained, lies in the complex world of international diplomacy and immigration enforcement. The Cambodian government refused to issue the necessary travel documents for Seng’s deportation, leaving ICE unable to send him back. U.S. law prohibits holding detainees indefinitely, so Seng was released—only to return to a life of crime that would span multiple states and claim more lives.
This dilemma isn’t unique to Seng’s case. As reported by The Daily Wire, the Trump administration sought to address such situations by brokering agreements with "third countries" willing to accept foreign deportees whom their home nations refused to take back. In one recent example, a plane carrying deportees from the U.S. arrived in Eswatini, a small African nation, as part of this policy. The administration also attempted to deport MS-13 gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Eswatini, as noted by CBS News.
Seng’s gang affiliation adds yet another layer to the story. He openly admitted to authorities that he is a member of the Asian Boyz, a notorious gang that originated in Southern California in the 1980s, comprised largely of teenage immigrants from Vietnam, Cambodia, and the Philippines. The gang has been linked to numerous violent crimes over the decades, and Seng’s own statements to investigators were chilling. When asked how he obtained the firearm used in the Texas murder, Seng replied that he was "not a snitch" and that the gun had simply "fallen out of the sky." He also expressed a desire to return to Cambodia, according to court documents reviewed by The Daily Wire.
The case has reignited debates over U.S. immigration policy and the ability of federal agencies to protect the public from individuals with serious criminal histories. Some critics argue that failures in the deportation system—particularly when foreign governments refuse to cooperate—leave communities vulnerable to repeat offenders. Others point out the legal and ethical challenges of indefinite detention and the need for diplomatic solutions. The Trump administration’s approach of sending deportees to third countries has itself sparked controversy, with supporters hailing it as a necessary fix and detractors questioning its fairness and effectiveness.
Meanwhile, the victims’ families are left to grapple with unimaginable loss. Gabriel Isiguzo’s killing outside a California strip club in 2022 was described by authorities as senseless and unprovoked. The more recent murder of Charminy Lewis in Texas has devastated another community. For law enforcement, the case is a stark reminder of the dangers posed by violent offenders who slip through the cracks of the system.
As Seng awaits a detention hearing in federal custody, more details are likely to emerge about his movements, motives, and the failures that allowed him to remain at large. For now, his case stands as a sobering illustration of what can happen when immigration enforcement, international diplomacy, and criminal justice collide—with deadly consequences.
There’s little doubt that Seng’s story will fuel ongoing debate about how best to balance due process, public safety, and America’s responsibilities as a nation of laws. But for the communities in California and Texas affected by his alleged crimes, the search for answers—and justice—continues.
