The secret behind the boxes of cocoa and honey shipped from the South to the North.
During the process of transporting the two boxes of firecrackers, Dang Ngoc Huong lied, claiming they contained honey and cocoa beans. Unexpectedly, the shipment was seized by authorities as soon as it arrived at its destination.
On July 15th, the People's Court of Nghe An province opened a first-instance criminal trial to hear the cases of three defendants: Dang Ngoc Huong (born in 1989, residing in Chu Prong commune, Gia Lai province) and Nguyen Dinh Truong (born in 1995, residing in Trung Loc commune, Nghe An province) on charges of "Trading in prohibited goods"; and Pham Thanh Lam (born in 1986, residing in Duc Co commune, Gia Lai province) on charges of "Possessing and transporting prohibited goods".
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According to the case details, around December 2024, Nguyen Dinh Truong wanted to find a supplier of firecrackers to buy and resell for profit. Through an acquaintance, Truong obtained Dang Ngoc Huong's phone number to contact her about purchasing firecrackers. Truong then contacted Huong, but was told that she did not have any firecrackers available at that time.
In early January 2025, Truong called Huong again and was told that the order was ready, so Truong asked Huong to send the bank account number to transfer the money. Through another person's account, Truong transferred 19.5 million VND to Huong to order firecrackers (36-piece packs) at a price of 650,000 VND per pack.
On January 4, 2025, Huong transported two sealed cardboard boxes containing firework blocks to a friend's house in Nghe An province for safekeeping. Huong claimed these were boxes containing honey and cocoa beans.
At approximately 5:45 AM on January 5, 2025, Nguyen Dinh Truong rode his motorbike to the entrance gate of Nghi Long commune, Nghi Loc district (formerly) to pick up firecrackers to send home. However, while transporting two cardboard boxes back home, Truong was discovered and caught red-handed by a task force from the Criminal Investigation Department of the Nghe An Provincial Police. The police determined that the total weight of the firecrackers in the two cardboard boxes seized from Nguyen Dinh Truong was 33.3 kg.
On January 6th, the police conducted an emergency search of Dang Ngoc Huong's residence, seizing 3 blocks of firecrackers weighing 10.83kg and 2 blocks of firecrackers weighing 11.88kg. On the same day, while Huong was being searched, Pham Thanh Lam surrendered and confessed to possessing and transporting firecrackers. He also handed over a sack containing 6 cylindrical firecracker tubes weighing 5.71kg and a cardboard box containing 18 blocks of firecrackers with a total weight of 31.16kg. The Criminal Investigation Department of the Nghe An Provincial Police arrested Dang Ngoc Huong under emergency circumstances.
At the trial, the defendant Huong gave evasive testimony, denied guilt, and did not admit to the crime. Huong claimed that she did not directly send the goods and that her intention was only to send defense-grade fireworks, not explosive firecrackers... However, faced with the evidence presented during the investigation and the confrontation of testimonies from other defendants at the trial, Huong finally admitted to the crime.
After a comprehensive review of the case, the panel of judges sentenced Dang Ngoc Huong to 15 months in prison for "Trafficking in prohibited goods." In addition, Huong must serve a 3-year suspended sentence with a 5-year probation period from a previous conviction for "Transporting prohibited goods." The combined sentence for both convictions is 4 years and 3 months in prison. Defendant Nguyen Dinh Truong was sentenced to 18 months in prison for "Trafficking in prohibited goods."
Defendant Pham Thanh Lam was sentenced to 15 months of imprisonment with a suspended sentence and a probationary period of 30 months for the crime of "Possessing and transporting prohibited goods".
