23 years in prison for the womanizing gangster.

The Hanoi People's Court recently opened a first-instance trial against Tran Thanh Hai for the crimes of illegal detention (Article 123 of the 1999 Penal Code), illegal possession of military weapons (Article 230 of the 1999 Penal Code), and fraud and appropriation of property (Article 139 of the 1999 Penal Code).

Appearing before the court, defendants Tran Xuan Tinh, To Hoai Nam, Tran Quoc Viet, Nguyen Van Hoai, and Nguyen Van Duy were tried for the crime of unlawful detention (Article 123 of the 1999 Penal Code)..

Hai, originally from Nam Dinh province, went to prison at the age of 17 and continued to be involved in legal troubles until the age of 22 for crimes such as theft and robbery. After being released from prison,Hai lived with Ms. Dinh Thi Hien as husband and wife for nearly 10 years and they had two children together.

In 2012, he and several accomplices went to Saigon and caused a shooting in the city center. On that occasion, Hai was prosecuted for intentional infliction of injury and sentenced to 11 months in prison. After serving his sentence, Hai returned to Nam Dinh and recruited many followers to help him with his "activities."

HeHe returned to live with Ms. Hien, but in 2015, conflicts arose, and they went their separate ways. Hai then started a relationship with a woman originally from Bac Giang province and had a child with her.

His second common-law wife was arrested for drug trafficking. Believing that Hien had given drugs to his "wife," leading to her legal trouble, Hai sought revenge.Thanks to his subordinates and acquaintances in the criminal underworld, he tried to find Hien's whereabouts.

Towards the end of May 2016, upon receiving information that Ms. Hien was staying at a hotel on Hao Nam Street (Dong Da District), Hai drove his Porsche with his accomplices to the location, beat and abducted the victim, and took her back to her hometown in Nam Dinh. He forced Ms. Hien to write a confession admitting to giving drugs to his girlfriend.After writing the letter, Hai continued to beat the victim before taking her to Hanoi and to the hospital for examination and treatment.

Nearly two months later, he traveled from Nam Dinh with his gang to Ha Dong General Hospital, where Ms. Hien was visiting an acquaintance, and abducted her.They took Ms. Hien to Bac Giang, forced her to apologize to the parents of her girlfriend who was in prison, and held her captive at a guesthouse.

Detectives from the Ministry of Public Security had to intervene to rescue Ms. Hien, who was suffering from multiple injuries. Hai and five of his accomplices were arrested. Police also seized a K59 pistol and four bullets from Hai.

While investigating the case of kidnapping and illegal possession of firearms, authorities also determined that Hai defrauded a woman – his girlfriend – of 2.4 billion VND. According to the documents, Hai knew that she wanted to sell her luxury apartment because she didn't have enough money to pay the developer. He promised to help her sell the apartment, telling her she had to find the money to pay the developer, and that he would lend her the rest. Hai then embezzled 2.4 billion VND from his girlfriend.

During the trial, Hai only admitted to kidnapping Ms. Hien, possessing the K59 gun, and denied committing fraud. However, the court determined that the victim had recorded all the conversations between Hai and Ms. Hien regarding the giving and receiving of the money.

Having determined sufficient grounds for Hai's criminal conduct, the court sentenced the defendant to a total of 23 years in prison for the three charges he was prosecuted for. The remaining five defendants received sentences ranging from 15 months to 42 months in prison.