Arrest of suspect in murder of monk and female Buddhist in temple

The suspect was identified as Nguyen Thanh Tam (born 1989), residing in Ward 5, Tan Nghia Town, Ham Tan District, Binh Thuan.

In his initial statement to the police, Tam confessed that at around 0:00 on March 23, he broke into the temple with a piece of wood with the intention of stealing property.

After breaking into the room of monk Thich Nguyen Loc (57 years old), Tam used a piece of wood to attack the people in the room, causing the monk and a female Buddhist named Nguyen Bao Yen (19 years old) to die, and another woman, Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong (43 years old, mother of victim Yen), to be seriously injured.

After committing the crime, Tam took 3 cell phones and fled the scene. At noon of the same day, Tam used a motorbike to go to Ho Chi Minh City and rented a room in Long Thanh My Ward, District 9 to hide.

Previously, at around 4:00 p.m. on March 23, Ms. Phuong's family members received a phone call from Ms. Phuong informing them that she was in critical condition at Quang An Pagoda, so they reported it to the police.

When the police arrived at the temple, they discovered Venerable Thich Nguyen Loc lying dead on a hammock, about 2 meters away was the body of Buddhist woman Yen.

Both died from being hit in the head with a hard object, causing skull injuries. Ms. Phuong suffered multiple injuries to her head and body but luckily survived.

Currently, the victim Nguyen Thi Phuong is out of danger but still in shock; she is being monitored and protected by the police. Initially, Ms. Phuong revealed very important details of the case to the authorities.

The case was then prosecuted and investigated by Binh Thuan Police. The Ministry of Public Security also sent a working group to Binh Thuan to assist in solving the case.