After shooting his neighbor, he used a "cicada shedding its skin" tactic to evade arrest for 22 years.
After shooting his neighbor in the chest, Luong Van Bun fled to Laos. For many years, while on the run, Bun hid his identity to conceal his crime. It wasn't until 22 years later that the murderer was finally apprehended, ending his long journey of evading arrest in a foreign land.
Hunting down the fugitive.
One day in late July 2024, the People's Court of Nghe An province held a first-instance trial of defendant Luong Van Bun (43 years old), originally from Kim Da commune, Tuong Duong district, for the crime of murder. The case in which Bun was accused occurred 22 years ago. The victim was Luong Kham V. (born in 1976). At the time, Bun's act of shooting his neighbor in the chest due to a minor dispute caused a stir in the poor village of Kim Da commune (Tuong Duong district).
Before the incident, Bun and Mr. V. were neighbors. Their houses were close together, separated only by a small dirt road. The neighborly relationship between the two families had been strained over the land boundary. Although the authorities had mediated several times, the two sides had not reached an agreement on the land boundary. Arguments between the two families occasionally occurred. The incident culminated on the afternoon of November 28, 2002.
According to the case file, on that day, Luong Kham V. was leveling the ground for his house, damaging the bamboo fence and crops in Bun's garden. Seeing this, Bun loudly questioned him, to which V. replied, "If it's damaged, fix it." The two argued, and V. went onto Bun's land, cursing as he went. At this point, Bun suddenly went into his house, grabbed a homemade gun, and shot V. in the left chest.
Mr. V. was unexpectedly shot and collapsed to the ground. Those present quickly took the victim to the hospital. Thanks to timely emergency treatment, Mr. V.'s life was saved, but he suffered a 33% loss of health.
After committing the crime, Luong Van Bun quickly fled. The police initiated a criminal case, charged the suspect, and organized a manhunt for Luong Van Bun to facilitate the investigation, but without success. On January 24, 2003, Luong Van Bun was placed on the police wanted list.
Shortly afterward, Bun's wife and children also disappeared from the area. Authorities believe that Bun most likely took his wife and children across the border into Laos to live. The search for the killer continues but has yielded no results as there are no leads.
In 2004, when the Ban Ve hydroelectric dam was built, many households in the reservoir area had to be relocated. Many people from Kim Da commune were moved to Thanh Son commune (Thanh Chuong district), hundreds of kilometers from their old hometown. In 2009, Kim Da commune was officially removed from the administrative map of Tuong Duong district. However, Luong Van Bun's crimes were not forgotten...
For many years, task forces of the Nghe An Provincial Police searched for Luong Van Bun, but found no trace of him. The search for this particularly wanted fugitive started almost from scratch, but that didn't faze the experienced detectives.
In late 2023, clues about Bun were discovered by the Criminal Police Department. After going to Laos, this man changed his name and registered his household there. To avoid detection by authorities, Bun frequently changed his residence, choosing remote, sparsely populated areas to live in. When law enforcement arrived at Bun's residence, he had already fled.
In early 2024, investigators discovered Luong Van Bun in a village in Vientiane, Laos. A plan to arrest Bun was quickly devised. Shortly afterward, a task force went to Laos to track down his whereabouts. On April 5, 2024, authorities successfully apprehended Luong Van Bun while he was hiding in Vientiane.
Day of Atonement
Before the witness stand, the defendant admitted to shooting Mr. V. When questioned by the panel of judges about why he fled after committing the crime, Bun stated that he was afraid. “At that time, my two children were still young. I was afraid of being arrested and going to prison, leaving my children orphaned, so I decided to flee,” Bun testified before the court.
The defendant admitted that after a period of hiding in Laos, he gathered information about the situation back home and then brought his wife and children over. In a foreign land, he rented a house to live with his wife and children. Initially, he and his wife worked in the fields to earn a living, and later they took up labor.
During his time on the run in Laos, Bun confessed to inquiring with the victim's family about his health. He learned that Mr. V.'s health had deteriorated since being shot, and he frequently visited the hospital for treatment. Although he felt guilty, he decided to let it go "because he had already gone too far and faced too many difficulties."
Luong Van Bun was unaware that a bullet from his gun had lodged in the victim's lung and could not be removed. This caused the victim to suffer serious health problems and live in pain for 10 years before passing away.
Attending the trial as a representative for the victim, Mr. V.'s wife couldn't help but feel pain as she recalled the miserable time her family had gone through. She explained that after being shot by Bun, her husband's health deteriorated. For many years, she had to accompany him to various hospitals for treatment. In addition, she had to single-handedly care for their two young children.
Her husband's illness and young children weighed heavily on her shoulders. What angered her most was that during that difficult time, she received no encouragement or visits from the defendant or any of his relatives. Therefore, at the trial, she requested that the defendant be severely punished. She also demanded that the defendant compensate her 200 million VND for medical treatment and care for her husband after he was shot by Bun.
In response to the request, the defendant stated that he "had no money." Bun said that his family currently had no assets, and his wife and children were living in rented accommodation. He asked the victim's side to reduce the amount of compensation. Although the court allowed a temporary adjournment of the trial to allow the two parties to reach an agreement on the civil aspects, they could not find common ground.
Given the opportunity to speak his final words before the court adjourned to deliberate, the defendant apologized to the victim's family. He also requested the court to consider mitigating circumstances so that he could return to his wife and children sooner and atone for his mistakes.
The court determined that the defendant's actions constituted murder. The fact that the victim survived was due to timely medical intervention, therefore a severe punishment is necessary. However, several mitigating circumstances should also be considered, such as honest confession, remorse, and assistance to the police in apprehending a fugitive in Laos. After a comprehensive review of the case, the court sentenced Luong Van Bun to 12 years in prison for murder. Regarding civil matters, the court ordered the defendant to compensate the victim 97 million VND.
So, after 22 years on the run, Bun has finally paid the price for his crime. Although the murderer has been punished, the pain inflicted on the victim's family still lingers. This is not just a lesson for the defendant, but for everyone: before any situation, one must consider and weigh the consequences carefully, not act impulsively or rashly, only to regret it later and pay a heavy price!
