Arrested 4 subjects in a transnational drug trafficking ring from Laos to Nghe An

Hanh Lam and Thanh Son communes are two of the five communes bordering Laos in Thanh Chuong district (Nghe An). Because they live close to the border area, many people here often illegally cross the border to Laos to trade in illegal timber, including Nguyen The Lam (born in 1976), Tran Van Tuong (born in 1979) and Phan Dinh Hoang (born in 1962), all residing in Hanh Lam commune (Thanh Chuong).

These three subjects got to know each other and became close after going to Laos to trade illegal timber. They also had many relationships with Lao people, including drug traffickers.

Subjects Tran Van Tuong and Phan Dinh Hoang. Photo: Duc Vu

Thinking that the timber trade was hard and the income was not much, Lam, Tuong and Hoang discussed and searched for drug dealers from Laos and then transported them back to Vietnam to sell for profit. During the drug transaction process, they were completely unaware that all activities were being closely monitored by the authorities. Considering the complexity and sophistication of this network, Thanh Chuong District Police established a special project to combat and dismantle this entire transnational drug trafficking and transportation network.

Among the subjects, Nguyen The Lam had a wife and 3 children but still regularly visited Luong Thi Thuong (born in 1985), residing in Thanh Son commune, Thanh Chuong district. Thuong's husband had passed away and this woman was currently raising 2 young children alone. On October 12, 2019, Lam invited Thuong to transport drugs from Hanh Lam commune to Dung town (Thanh Chuong).

To fool the authorities, Lam and Thuong rode two motorbikes. Before leaving, Lam told Thuong to bring the drugs and go behind, while Lam went to Dung town to wait first. At around 5:30 p.m. the same day, the two met, then got in a taxi to go to Vinh City bypass in Hung Dao commune, Hung Nguyen district (Nghe An).

Love couple Luong Thi Thuong and Nguyen The Lam. Photo: Duc Vu

While Lam and Thuong were waiting for a bus at the Vinh City bypass to go to the South, the working groups of the Criminal, Economic and Drug Crime Investigation Police Team in coordination with the detectives of the Drug Crime Investigation Police Department (Nghe An Police) raided and caught them red-handed. They were both shocked and bewildered when they were caught with 3 kg of crystal meth and 4,900 USD in their possession.

At the same time as arresting Lam and Thuong, the task force simultaneously arrested Tran Van Tuong and Phan Dinh Hoang at their homes.

Evidence of the case. Photo: Duc Vu

At the Investigation Police Agency of Thanh Chuong District Police, the subjects initially admitted to the act of buying, selling and illegally transporting drugs. Accordingly, Tuong and Hoang gave Lam 15,000 USD to buy drugs from Laos, then directed Lam and Thuong to transport the drugs to the South for consumption. A detective officer of Thanh Chuong District Police said: The initial purpose of the subjects was to buy drugs in larger quantities, but because they ran out of money, they were only able to buy 3 kg of crystal meth.

Currently, Thanh Chuong District Police are continuing to investigate and expand the case.