HCM City’s People’s Court on Monday handed down eight death sentences to seven men and one woman and one life sentence to another man of the same ring for heroin and methamphetamime trafficking.
Eight people are sentenced to death in HCM City for drug trafficking on October 7
The nine defendants, aged from 33 to 65,were brought to court with the charge of trafficking 379 heroin cakes weighing over 132 kilos and 55 kilos of methamphetamine.
According to the indictment by the Supreme People’s Procuracy, Phan Huu Hieu, 45, who was the leader of the ring, met a man from Laos named Siva Tony while he was at a casino in Vientiane. After losing a large amount of money, he had to ask Tony for a loan, and agreed to help set up a trafficking line from Laos to Vietnam. Hieu then received drugs from the Laotian man in Danang City and then transported to HCM City to Ly Tho Phuoc and and Phan Thach Dinh.
On July 11, 2018, Dinh was arrested while carrying 40 heroin cakes that had just been bought from Hieu. The same day, Hieu was caught while handing over 60 heroin cakes to Phuoc.
Police also seized another 47 cakes at Dinh’s residence in HCM City's District 3, along with another 32 cakes at a house in Binh Tan District.
Phan Huu Hieu is given a death sentence for trafficking heroin on October 7
After that, the six other suspects were detained. The defendants all had criminal records. Hieu, Dinh and Phuoc are among those received the death penalty.
Also on Monday, the People’s Courtin the northern mountainous province of Son La sentenced three people to death for heroin trafficking.Two of their accomplices received life sentences.All of the defendants were from Moc Chau District.
