Old woman wrongly convicted of killing her husband demands 18 billion VND in compensation

Ms. Dang Thi Nga (82 years old, residing in Tuan Giao district, Dien Bien province) in a petition recently sent to the People's Court of Dien Bien province said that she was detained for 205 days and wrongly prosecuted for 28 years (from 1990 to October 2017).

Mrs. Nga hopes to be compensated soon to make up for her children's losses.

Mr. Trinh Huy Duong (Mrs. Nga’s second son) was arrested for murdering his father, had to spend more than 800 days in prison, and was wrongly prosecuted without detention for nearly 26 years. Mr. Duong requested compensation for mental damage, loss of income, loss of health, and costs of appeal, totaling 4.5 billion VND.

Mr. Trinh Cong Hien (Mrs. Nga's eldest son) was arrested and detained for more than 800 days for killing his father. Mr. Hien was also wrongly prosecuted and not imprisoned for nearly 26 years. Due to depression and resentment for being wrongly accused of killing his father, Mr. Hien became ill and died in 2004 without being exonerated. The total amount of compensation the family requested for Mr. Hien was four billion VND.

In addition to her request for compensation, Mrs. Nga also recalled the extremely painful days when she was convicted of murdering her husband and her two sons of killing their father. When she and her two older sons were arrested, the three remaining children were still young, not yet adults.

“This case has caused me and my family a huge loss that cannot be compensated. The fact that my entire family, including adults and minors, were investigated, prosecuted and wrongly tried, not only seriously affected our honor and reputation, but also brought condemnation from society. We have not only suffered a mental breakdown but also a serious physical breakdown,” Ms. Nga’s petition stated.

Ms. Nga hopes that the People's Court of Dien Bien province will soon organize negotiations and carry out compensation because she is now at the threshold of "near death". "I hope that before I die, I can help my children compensate for some of the losses over the past years," she said.

The 30-year-old wrongful conviction at the foot of Pha Din Pass

On the afternoon of September 18, 1989, Mrs. Nga discovered her husband's body in the well and reported it to the authorities. Based on the examination of the scene and the body, the police of Tuan Giao district (then part of Lai Chau province) prosecuted Mrs. Nga for murder.

The case file was then transferred to Lai Chau Provincial Police for handling according to their authority. In October 1989, the investigation expanded, the police decided to prosecute Mr. Hien and Duong for murder and transferred the case to Lai Chau Provincial People's Procuracy for prosecution.

In January 1990, the People's Procuracy of Lai Chau province issued an indictment, prosecuting Hien and Duong for murder, and Ms. Nga was transferred to the crime of concealing a crime. In April of the same year, the People's Court of Lai Chau province held a first-instance trial and sentenced defendant Hien to 18 years in prison, Duong to 12 years in prison for murder, and Ms. Nga to three years in prison with a suspended sentence.

Afterwards, both Mr. Hien and Mr. Duong filed petitions for a reduction in their sentences. However, both men changed their statements, claiming innocence and not guilty of parricide.

On December 18, 1990, the Supreme People's Court of Appeal overturned the first instance judgment on the grounds of some shortcomings in the investigation. During the additional investigation, Mr. Hien and his younger brother were released on bail after 28 months of detention.

For nearly 30 years, the case remained pending, without any conclusion, although Ms. Nga’s family repeatedly filed petitions for redress. In 2016, Ms. Nga sent a petition to the inter-sectoral prosecution agencies of Dien Bien province.

In September 2017, Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court Nguyen Hoa Binh requested the interdisciplinary prosecution agency to promptly clarify the case at the foot of Pha Din Pass.

On October 11, 2017, the Dien Bien Provincial Inter-Agency Litigation directly reported and asked for instructions from the Central Inter-Agency Litigation on handling the case and handling Ms. Nga's petition; at the same time, directed the Dien Bien Provincial Litigation Agency to suspend the investigation of the case, suspend the investigation of the defendants Nga, Hien, and Tuong, publicly apologize and compensate according to the law.

On October 24, 2017, Dien Bien Provincial People's Court held a public apology to Mrs. Nga and her three children for wrongful prosecution and trial.