Young man released from prison sentenced to life imprisonment for starting a drug trafficking business after 'starting a business' selling drugs.
Shortly after his release from prison, Nguyen Tuan Anh resumed his "business" by buying drugs on credit to resell for profit. This time, Tuan Anh paid the price with an indefinite sentence.
On January 20th, the Nghe An Provincial People's Court opened a first-instance criminal trial to hear the cases of defendants Nguyen Tuan Anh (born in 1989, residing in Trung Do Ward, Vinh City), Nguyen Tien Loc (born in 1983, residing in Trung Phuc Cuong Commune, Nam Dan District), and Dang Cong Bang (born in 1989, residing in Vinh Tan Ward, Vinh City). Nguyen Tuan Anh was charged with "Illegal trafficking of narcotics"; Nguyen Cong Bang and Nguyen Tien Loc were charged with "Illegal trafficking of narcotics".Illegal possession of narcotics"
According to the case details, after serving his prison sentence and returning to his hometown, around May 2024, Nguyen Tuan Anh met Thang at a beer quán (Thang was a man Tuan Anh had known years before when he visited Nghia Dan, but his background and address were unknown). During their conversation, Thang asked Tuan Anh if he sold drugs. Tuan Anh said he had just been released from prison and had no money, but Thang told him to sell them and he could pay later when he had the money. Twenty days later, Thang gave Tuan Anh 24 packages of methamphetamine to sell for 220 million VND. Tuan Anh hid them in the attic of his house with the intention of selling them for profit.
On June 16th, Nguyen Tien Loc called and gave money to Dang Cong Bang to buy 5 million VND worth of methamphetamine for personal use. Bang agreed and contacted Tuan Anh. After obtaining the drugs, Bang brought them to Loc's rented room. Loc took out a small amount to use with Bang, and divided the rest into four small packets, keeping them in his jacket pocket for later use.
At approximately 3:30 PM on June 22nd, at a rented room in My Ha hamlet, Hung Loc commune, Vinh City, police discovered and apprehended Nguyen Tien Loc, seizing the aforementioned drugs. On June 24th, Dang Cong Bang surrendered to the police. On July 15th, Nguyen Tuan Anh was also arrested by the police along with over 1,600 grams of drugs.
Authorities determined that Nguyen Tuan Anh is criminally liable for the illegal trafficking of a total of over 1,680 grams of narcotics. Nguyen Tien Loc and Dang Cong Bang are criminally liable for the illegal possession of 1,832 grams of narcotics.
At the trial, the defendants admitted to the crimes as charged in the indictment. Tuan Anh confessed that he was driven by greed and followed the instructions of a man named Thang to buy drugs for resale. Defendant Bang stated that he only helped Loc buy the drugs. Regarding the money used to buy the drugs, Loc claimed it came from savings he had accumulated from his work. All defendants requested the court to consider mitigating circumstances so they could return to their families sooner.
Of the three defendants, Tuan Anh and Bang both have bad criminal records, having served multiple prison sentences for crimes related to drugs, intentional infliction of injury, theft, etc.
Considering the circumstances presented in court, the panel of judges sentenced Nguyen Tuan Anh to life imprisonment for the crime of "Illegal trafficking of narcotics"; Nguyen Tien Loc to 21 months in prison, and Dang Cong Bang to 18 months in prison, both for the crime of "Illegal possession of narcotics".
