7 years in prison for 'heroin monster' who was sentenced to 23 years in prison

(Baonghean.vn)- On the morning of September 14, Tan Ky District People's Court conducted a criminal trial against Le Thi Toan (born 1960) in Mai Hung Commune, Quynh Luu District for the crime of "Illegal possession of narcotics".

According to the indictment, at about 9:30 a.m. on June 27, 2017, Le Thi Toan had a stomachache, so she took 6 million VND and hitched a ride with a passerby from Quynh Vinh commune, Quynh Luu district to Tinh Gia district (Thanh Hoa) to buy heroin to take as medicine.

When she got off the bus, she met a man who worked as a rickshaw driver (identity unknown) and gave him 6 million VND to buy drugs for her. About 20 minutes later, the man returned and gave her a plastic bag containing 3 packages of heroin. Toan put the heroin in a hand-held hat and took a bus to Tan Ky district to check the price of bamboo shoots and corn to buy and sell.

Le Thi Toan at the trial. Photo: Phuong Hao

At 5:20 p.m. the same day, when she arrived at Dong Kho hamlet, Nghia Dung commune, Tan Ky district, she had just gotten out of the car when the Tan Ky district police working group asked her to undergo an administrative check.

Upon inspection, the working group discovered 3 packages of white powder suspected to be heroin that she had just bought in her hand-held hat.

Forensic conclusion No. 754/KL-PC 54 (MT) dated June 29, 2017 of the Criminal Techniques Department of Nghe An Provincial Police concluded that the white powder of Ms. Toan was heroin weighing 14.68 grams.

At the investigation agency, Ms. Toan confessed that she bought the drugs for her own use. Her confession was consistent with the documents and evidence collected in the case file.

Previously, she was sentenced to 7 years in prison by the People's Court of Quynh Luu district for "Illegal possession of narcotics"; Nghe An provincial People's Court sentenced her to 8 years in prison for "Illegal trading of explosives"; in 1999, Quang Tri provincial People's Court sentenced her to 8 years in prison for "Illegal trading of explosives".

After being released from prison, despite her old age, she continued to reoffend. At the end of the trial, the panel sentenced Le Thi Toan to 7 years in prison./.

Phuong Hao