Armed with a knife, he attacked the homeowner and poured gasoline to set fire to the villagers' property.

According to the indictment, due to a pre-existing personal conflict, at approximately 1 PM on March 6, 2022, Pham Van Hung, a severely disabled person (amputated leg), drove a motorcycle with license plate 37Z2-9835 belonging to his brother PVH to Sen Market in Nghia Dong commune, Tan Ky district, to buy a knife and two white plastic containers (5-liter capacity). Afterwards, Pham Van Hung went to Hung Tien 2 gas station in Hamlet 5, Nghia Binh commune, Tan Ky district, to buy 170,000 VND worth of gasoline and poured it into the two plastic containers.

Defendant Pham Van Hung in court. Photo: Phuong Hao

After purchasing a knife and gasoline, Pham Van Hung went to the house of Mr. TVN, born in 1968, and Mrs. NTT, born in 1969, residing in Hamlet 2, Nghia Dong Commune. Upon arriving, he saw Mr. N and Mrs. T feeding their grandchild in front of the bedroom. Pham Van Hung, carrying the knife and two cans of gasoline, entered the house. Seeing Pham Van Hung enter their home, Mr. N and Mrs. T greeted him, but Pham Van Hung did not respond. Instead, he went to Mrs. T and slashed her right forearm with the knife, causing injury.

Because they were attacked with a knife, Mrs. T and Mr. N carried their grandchild and ran out into the street. Pham Van Hung took one can of gasoline and poured it onto the floor in the bedroom area. He then took a second can of gasoline to the kiosk selling animal feed and supplies belonging to Mr. N's family and used a gas lighter to set fire to some of the equipment and supplies in the shop.

At this time, seeing Mrs. T bandaging her wounds in front of the pharmacy near her house, Pham Van Hung continued to threaten her with a knife, but was restrained by others. A short while later, Pham Van Hung returned to Mr. N's house with the knife, slashed at the aluminum and glass display case, and took six glass bottles of honey, throwing them against the wall and window before driving back home.

After being injured by Pham Van Hung's knife attack, Ms. NTT was taken for treatment. The forensic examination report concluded that Ms. T.'s current body injury rate is 13%; the total property damage is 3,490,000 VND.

During the investigation, Mr. TVN and Ms. NTT requested that Pham Van Hung compensate them for health and property damages totaling 49,135,710 VND. At the trial, the defendant and the victims reached a mutual agreement, with Hung compensating Ms. T 48,552,952 VND. To date, Pham Van Hung has not paid any compensation. The victims requested a reduced sentence for the defendant, who expressed deep remorse and regret for his actions.

The court sentenced Pham Van Hung to 24 months in prison for intentionally causing injury and 24 months in prison for destroying property. The combined sentence for Pham Van Hung is 4 years in prison.