Gambling den busted, explosives discovered

(Baonghean.vn) - While searching Nguyen Ngoc Chau's factory, Quy Hop police seized 649 explosives weighing 129.8 kg, 251 electric detonators with aluminum shells No. 8 and 9.6 m of slow-burning wire that Chau had bought and hidden under the bed and bed at the stone processing factory.

On the afternoon of October 26, the People's Court of Quy Hop district opened a criminal trial against defendant Nguyen Ngoc Chau for the crime of "Illegal possession of explosives".

According to the indictment, at 11 p.m. on February 3, 2017, at the stone processing factory of Nguyen Ngoc Chau (born in 1962) residing in Hop Thuan hamlet, Dong Hop commune, Quy Hop district police caught Nguyen Ngoc Chau and 12 subjects gambling in the form of shaking dice. In addition to the tools used to shake dice, the gambling mat was seized with 22.4 million VND, and the subjects were seized with more than 29 million VND and 14 mobile phones.

Conducting an emergency search at Chau's stone processing factory at 2:15 a.m. on February 4, 2017, Quy Hop police seized 649 explosive sticks weighing 129.8 kg; 251 electric detonators with aluminum shells No. 8 and 9.6 m of slow-burning wire that Chau had purchased and hidden under the bed and bed at the stone processing factory.

On February 9, 2017, the Quy Hop police investigation agency prosecuted the defendants for the crimes of "Gambling" and "Organizing gambling".

In the conclusion of the Criminal Techniques Department of Nghe An Police, it was affirmed that the samples collected at Chau's factory provided by Quy Hop police were all industrial Amonite explosives, detonators and slow-burning fuses.

Defendant Nguyen Ngoc Chau. Photo: Phan Giang

At the police station, Nguyen Ngoc Chau confessed that although he did not have a license to use explosives, he needed them for quarrying, so when a strange man he did not know called to sell them on a night in November 2016, Chau bought 649 explosive sticks weighing 129.8 kg; 251 electric detonators with aluminum shell No. 8 for more than 8.6 million VND and hid them under the bed and bed in the factory. The remaining 9.6 m of slow-burning wire was bought by Chau 2 years ago, but because it was not used for a long time, it broke so Chau put it under the bed. Chau made the detonator from a mosquito racket. Before he could use the above materials, the police in Quy Hop discovered and confiscated them.

Regarding the unknown man whose name and address Chau confessed to buying the explosives, because he did not know their name or address, there was no basis for investigation and verification.

Based on the evidence and documents examined at the trial; based on the results of the debate at the trial on the basis of full and comprehensive consideration of the evidence, opinions of the Prosecutor, the defendant and other participants in the proceedings, the Panel sentenced Nguyen Ngoc Chau to 5 years in prison for the crime of "Illegal possession of explosives" under Clause 3, Article 232 of the Penal Code. Previously, on August 31, 2017, for the crimes of "Gambling" and "Organizing gambling", the Panel sentenced defendant Nguyen Ngoc Chau to 2 years and 3 months in prison./.

Phan Giang