The series of crimes committed by a notorious gang leader.

Bloody killings

Between late 2010 and mid-2011, Vinh City witnessed a series of crimes with characteristics of organized crime, causing considerable public outrage. Through investigative techniques, detectives identified the ringleader of these cases as a gang led by Le Van Linh (born 1972; residing in Ha Huy Tap Ward, Vinh City), also known as Linh "Cot".

This criminal gang has repeatedly committed numerous sensational crimes involving multiple individuals.protection racketBidding, auctions, debt collection, and other disputes. It's not just about shootings to intimidate gangsters, but also shootings targeting innocent civilians…

On the evening of August 26, 2010, due to a conflict with the group led by Nguyen Ngoc Hieu, also known as Hieu "Vuong" (born in 1990; residing in Cua Nam Ward, Vinh City), Le Van Linh sent his son, Le Quoc Hung (also known as Hung "Linh", born in 1992; residing in Ha Huy Tap Ward, Vinh City), to call and arrange a meeting with Hieu's group at the Vinh City Stadium area in Cua Nam Ward to settle their grievances. Despite his young age, relying on the influence of his father, Le Van Linh, Le Quoc Hung frequently caused trouble, challenging others to fights and assaults, and was a very effective right-hand man of Linh "the short-sighted".

That evening, Hung called several other individuals to the area near the southern city gate to lie in ambush for Hieu "Vuong"'s group. Hung's group prepared several knives, swords, and two submachine guns before leaving.

At around 11 PM that same day, upon spotting a four-seater Captiva car without license plates driving slowly in the Vinh airport area, Hung's group, mistaking it for Hieu "Vuong"'s group looking for them, opened fire on the back of the car. Eight bullets pierced the car's body and rear windshield, with one bullet hitting the head of an occupant.

The victim has been identified as Tran Nhat Tan (born in 1980; from Quynh Luu district), who was accidentally shot while looking for a late-night eatery. Fortunately, the bullet only penetrated soft tissue. Although he lost a considerable amount of blood, he was taken to the hospital in time and his life is not in danger.

In another incident, on the afternoon of March 15, 2011, Le Van Linh and his son Le Quoc Hung, along with Tran Hoai Ky (aka Dong "bu"), Nguyen Anh Tu, and Vo Thanh Tuan, went to Li Li coffee shop (Hung Phuc ward, Vinh City) to confront the owner and demand payment of a debt. A quarrel and fight ensued at the shop, and they used swords to seriously injure two people, who had to be taken to the hospital for emergency treatment.

The Linh "Cọt" gang not only recklessly attacked other gangs to assert their dominance but were also ready to "punish" anyone who dared to cross their ranks. On the afternoon of May 28, 2011, Tran Hoai Ky visited Linh "Cọt"'s house. There, Ky overheard his gang leader instructing him to prepare to "teach" a journalist who dared to write about him a lesson. On the morning of May 30, 2011, Le Quoc Hung called Ky, telling him to prepare his weapons for a mission.

When Hung arrived, Ky took out a knife, put it in the car, and all four of them rode on two motorbikes along Le Nin Street. Spotting the journalist's car, which their gang leader Linh "Cort" had targeted, ahead, they assigned themselves to follow. When they saw the car pull into a gas station at 2 Le Hong Phong Street (Hung Binh Ward, Vinh City) to refuel, Ky told Tu: "Go and slash the journalist who's filling up." Following the order, Tu grabbed a knife and ran over, slashing Hung's left shoulder, the cut extending down his left arm, before fleeing.

According to the assessment by the Nghe An Provincial Police, the journalist suffered permanent injuries resulting in 10% disability. Previously, the police received a complaint from a construction company in Hanoi alleging that Linh "Cot"'s gang had threatened them, preventing them from participating in the bidding process for a construction project in Nghe An. Furthermore, Linh "Cot" had colluded with several gangsters from Hai Phong to control the mining sector in Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces... On July 10, 2011, investigators launched a special operation to dismantle this gang that had been wreaking havoc and causing public unrest in Vinh City.

The investigation began with an intentional assault at the Li Li coffee shop. However, during the investigation, the victims were afraid to report the crime. Using professional methods, the investigation team obtained the identities of the individuals involved in the stabbing at the Li Li coffee shop. On the afternoon of October 20, 2011, the Criminal Investigation Department of the Nghe An Provincial Police arrested and detained Le Quoc Hung (son of Linh "Cort"), Tran Hoai Ky, Nguyen Anh Tu, Vo Thanh Tuan, and Tran Anh Tuan on charges of intentional assault. Linh "Cort" fled. The investigating agency issued an arrest warrant for Linh on charges of intentional assault.

Fugitive wanted for drug trafficking

While on the run from a warrant, Linh "Cọt" met with Nguyen Thi Hanh (46 years old, residing in Vinh City), a "drug queenpin" who specialized in transporting drugs from Laos to Vietnam for distribution to dealers from Nghe An to Ho Chi Minh City. When they met, Hanh had just bought 430 grams of methamphetamine from Laos and was preparing to bring it to Ho Chi Minh City to sell to regular customers.

But when Linh expressed interest in buying, Hanh took out 430 grams of methamphetamine to show Linh. After testing the "product," Linh told Hanh: "This one has a fruity smell, so customers don't like it much. Nowadays, they only like the kind with a fishy smell. Just let me sell this batch and you can pay later." After reaching an agreement, Hanh agreed to sell 430 grams of methamphetamine to Linh for 258 million dong.

In late October 2011, a regular customer in Ho Chi Minh City gave Hanh 700 million VND to prepare for a trip to Laos to "collect drugs." Hanh called Linh to ask if she wanted to join the purchase, and Linh agreed. The next day, Linh brought 35,000 USD to a coffee shop and handed it over to Hanh. Hanh took all the money and traveled to Laos to buy 2 kg of methamphetamine from a man named Noi. To conceal the drugs and bring them back to Vietnam, Hanh went to a market in Laos and bought two 20-liter paint cans, then emptied some of the paint and replaced it with the methamphetamine.

After carefully disguising herself, Hanh called her son, Nguyen Canh Chien (25 years old), and his accomplices to transport drugs from Laos back to Vietnam. Before leaving, Hanh instructed Chien that if the "goods" were successfully brought back, he should give Linh "Cot" 1kg, and take the remaining half to Ho Chi Minh City to deliver to customers. When the drug ring led by Nguyen Thi Hanh was dismantled, Le Van Linh sensed danger and fled to Laos and then to Cambodia. However, because he was a crucial link in the drug trafficking ring, Le Van Linh was issued an arrest warrant by the Ha Tinh Provincial Police on February 27, 2012.

Investigators said that Linh was very reckless and cunning. This gang specialized in protection rackets, debt collection, and contract killings… Under his command, there were always 50 henchmen ready to use knives and guns to fight for their boss. When he was on the run, he received help from a network of contacts everywhere, making it very difficult for detectives to find him.

After more than a year of hiding in Laos and Cambodia, Le Van Linh was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Agency of Nghe An province on February 6, 2013. On July 11, 2013, at the first-instance trial, the People's Court of Nghe An province sentenced Le Van Linh to 4 years in prison for "Intentional infliction of injury". During that time, Linh was transferred to Ha Tinh province for further investigation and trial for drug trafficking. On April 17, 2015, the People's Court of Ha Tinh province held a first-instance trial of Le Van Linh for the crime of illegally trading narcotics. For the crimes committed, the court sentenced Le Van Linh to 20 years in prison, in addition to a fine of 20 million VND.