The late apology of the husband who committed a crime against his wife

Gunfire in the night

Early one morning in early March, a group of siblings in a family in Xa Luong commune, Tuong Duong district were present at the People's Court of Nghe An province. Today, they came here to attend the trial.killingThe defendant was their father, and the victim was none other than their mother. It was too much pain for the children.

Sitting in the courtroom, defendant Luong Van Toi (born 1962), residing in Xa Luong commune, Tuong Duong district, often turned his head to where his children were sitting. It was unclear what Toi was telling or asking his children, but both father and son looked down, their eyes sad.

Defendant Luong Van Toi was sentenced to 17 years in prison. Photo: Tran Vu

Before the heartbreaking incident, Toi and his wife Kha TH (born in 1962, the victim in the case) had a happy time with 4 children, both boys and girls. Although their economic situation was not good, their married life could not avoid daily conflicts, but they always endured and overlooked them to take care of their family. Especially when they saw their children grow up and get married one by one, the grandparents had even more joy.

But then, the husband's loud voice when drinking caused the couple to quarrel many times. However, Toi always believed that he would not divorce his wife because once married, they would live together for the rest of their lives. However, in the dark of night, a loud bang from the gun Toi held in his hand pushed this family into tragedy.

Accordingly, on the evening of August 21, 2022, Luong Van Toi went to his neighbor's house to drink alcohol. At around 8:00 p.m., on the way home, Toi called his wife, but Mrs. H. did not answer the phone. When he got home, Toi questioned his wife, leading to an argument between the two. At this time, the wife went out, and Toi held a homemade gun (usually used for hunting) to his wife's stomach, threatening to shoot. Hearing his parents arguing, the youngest son immediately came out to stop them and put the gun away.

Toi went out for a while and then came back and asked his son to give him the gun. Then, Toi went to the kitchen to meet his wife and asked for money to buy some drinks to sober up, but Mrs. H. did not give it to him. Toi returned to the bedroom to get the gun, pointed it at his wife and said, “I will kill you. You die first, then I will die.” With that, a loud gunshot rang out, and the wife fell to the ground, dead.

Hearing the gunshots, the son ran out. At that time, Toi told his children that he had shot his wife to death. After giving his children 20 million VND for the funeral, Toi fled. The next day, Luong Van Toi turned himself in to the police, admitting to shooting his wife to death.

Late Apology

The defendant sent an apology through his brother-in-law. Photo: Tran Vu

During the trial, the defendant showed a sincere attitude in his confession and repented of his crime. The defendant said that he was drunk that day and could not control his actions. Regarding the motive for the crime, the defendant explained that his wife did not answer the phone when he called. "The defendant asked his wife for money to buy a bottle of drink to sober up but she did not give it to him so...", the defendant interrupted his testimony. "Just because he asked for money and she did not give it to him, he shot his wife to death?", the judge asked sternly, but Toi remained silent.

In the presence of the children and the victim’s younger brother, the defendant turned to apologize. Toi admitted that he had often argued with his wife in daily life, but he never intended to leave her. That day, the defendant also had no intention of taking her life.

Defendant Toi stated that during his detention, he always felt remorseful and had a guilty conscience about his actions. In response to the victim's younger brother's request to "handle the defendant strictly according to the law", defendant Toi bowed his head many times to apologize. "I know I have a hot temper. That incident was entirely my fault. Please let me apologize to my mother, uncle, brothers, sisters, uncles and aunts on my mother's side. I hope everyone will forgive me. If my mother's family forgives me, I accept it. If not, I am willing to die in prison," the defendant turned to apologize to the victim's younger brother, who was also authorized by the victim's mother to attend this trial.

Regarding the homemade gun that the defendant used to commit the crime against his wife, Toi said he bought it to go hunting in the forest. In the presence of a large number of people, the jury reminded everyone about the habit of keeping and using homemade guns to hunt wild animals. These guns have simple manufacturing technology but their accuracy and lethality are very high, endangering lives. Although the authorities regularly promote the self-handling of homemade guns, many people do not do so. This poses many potential risks...

The defendant's son asked for a reduced sentence for his father. Photo: Tran Vu

After the deliberation, the panel of judges determined that the defendant committed a serious crime, and because of a trivial conflict, he took his wife's life. The defendant's actions caused emotional and mental damage to the family and caused public confusion, so he should be severely punished. However, it is also necessary to consider some mitigating circumstances for the defendant, such as surrendering, honestly confessing, and the defendant's father being a person who contributed to the revolution.

Considering the case as a whole, the court sentenced Luong Van Toi to 17 years in prison for murder. In the civil case, the defendant was ordered to pay the victim’s mother 300,000 VND per month in support.

Just because of a small conflict, Toi committed a crime against the woman he used to be his “wife”. If Toi had not drunk alcohol and had been calmer in his behavior, things would not have turned out as bad as they did.