Police in Ho Chi Minh City on July 16 arrested Tran Minh Tri, born in 1995 and from Vinh Long Province, on suspicion of robbery by snatching.
Police question Tran Minh Tri (Photo: Police).
The incident took place at about 7.45 pm on July 14, when Lee Jae Young, a South Korean national born in 1983, was walking along Pham Van Buong Road in Tan Hung Ward. Investigators said Tri rode up on a motorcycle and snatched the handbag Lee was carrying before fleeing the scene.
Lee reported the incident to police, saying the bag contained VND 12 million (USD 458) in cash and a mobile phone storing important personal data.
After receiving the report, Pham Ngoc Thang, head of Tan Hung Ward Police, ordered officers to launch an immediate search for the suspect.
Police arrested Tri about three hours after the report was filed in the Ten Lua Road area and recovered all of the stolen property.
A police officer returns the handbag to the foreign tourist (Photo: Police).
According to investigators, Tri has two previous convictions for robbery by snatching.
