Preventing murders stemming from minor disputes.

Murder over a minor dispute.

Recently, although the Nghe An Provincial Police have done a good job in preventing, combating, and suppressing various types of crimes, contributing to ensuring security and order in the area, due to social causes, the situation of murder and intentional infliction of injury still occurs...

For example, on the morning of November 27, 2019, at the Nghe An Provincial People's Court, the Hanoi High People's Court sentenced Tran Van Hoa (35 years old), residing in Lien Minh commune, Duc Tho district (Ha Tinh province), to 18 years in prison for "murder." The indictment stated that Tran Van Hoa and his wife, along with his brother Tran Van Sinh and his wife, traveled by boat on the Lam River from Duc Tho district to fish. When the group arrived at the alluvial plain in Hamlet 5, Hung Nhan commune, Hung Nguyen district, a conflict arose with Ho Duc Troi.

Believing that the group had trespassed on the alluvial plain managed by his family, Trỗi took Sinh's fishing net and smashed it against the side of the boat before throwing it into the river. Seeing this, Hoa picked up a piece of wood and struck Trỗi twice in the back, then chased him into the river. When Trỗi grabbed a wooden stake to hit him, Hoa used an electric fishing net to defend himself and pressed the metal tip of the rod against the victim. Trỗi was electrocuted, fell into the boat, and died shortly afterward. The following day, Trần Văn Hoa surrendered to the police.

Because of trivial conflicts, these young men found themselves entangled in legal troubles for murder. Photo: Minh Tam - Contributor

Also stemming from a momentary conflict leading to murder, on November 22, 2019, the Criminal Investigation Agency of the Nghe An Provincial Police issued a decision to initiate a criminal case, indict and detain Nguyen Van Long (born in 1967, residing in Xuan Lam hamlet, Nghia Hung commune, Nghia Dan district) for the crime of murder. Previously, on November 18, 2019, Long and Hoang Van Duc (born in 1985, from the same hamlet) attended a solidarity festival organized by the hamlet. After eating and drinking, Long and Duc, along with many others, went to Nguyen Van Hai's house in the same hamlet to sing karaoke. There, a conflict arose between Long and Duc. Believing that Long had drunk too much alcohol and made many unfriendly remarks and actions, Duc slapped Long in the face and chased him away.

At approximately 10:30 PM that same day, Long went to Nguyen Van Hai's house carrying a 42cm long knife and called Duc out to talk. Long used the knife to stab Duc three times, one of which pierced his abdomen. After committing the crime, Long fled the scene. Although Duc was taken to the hospital by local residents for emergency treatment, he died later due to the severity of his injuries.

Most recently, the Nghe An Provincial Police investigated and clarified the murder case that occurred on December 16, 2019, in Dien Loc commune, Dien Chau district. After investigating and clarifying the cause of the crime, many people couldn't help but sigh and regret that, because of a trivial conflict, two groups of young men clashed, resulting in two deaths, one person in critical condition, and two young people facing legal consequences.

The incident stemmed from an incident at a snail restaurant where, despite not knowing each other, Cao Thai Duong (born 1997, residing in Hamlet 8, Dien Trung Commune), Le Van Anh (born 2000), and Cao Van Chuyen (born 1993, both residing in Hamlet 4, Dien An Commune) invited Hoang Trung (born 1999, residing in Hamlet 7, Dien Tho Commune, Dien Chau District) to drink, but he refused. Angered by the refusal, after the gathering ended, Cao Thai Duong, Le Van Anh, and Cao Van Chuyen intercepted Hoang Trung and his friend Nguyen Xuan Ngoc (born 2001, residing in Hamlet 7, Dien Tho Commune, Dien Chau District) and chased after them. At this point, Nguyen Xuan Ngoc pulled out a knife he had concealed in his pocket and repeatedly stabbed Duong, Anh, and Chuyen, resulting in Duong and Anh's deaths, while Chuyen sustained serious injuries. After committing the crime, Trung and Ngoc fled their residences until they were persuaded to return and surrender.

Major General Nguyen Huu Cau - Director of the Provincial Police, presents awards to the teams and individuals who quickly solved the murder case that occurred in the area. Photo: Minh Tam

It is evident that most of these cases arise from immediate conflicts in interpersonal relationships, not from underlying issues that could be detected and prevented in a timely manner. Some cases involve very minor conflicts but leave behind heartbreaking consequences. The result is death, imprisonment, and numerous negative impacts on society, complicating the security and order situation in the locality. Despite this distressing situation, for various reasons, it has not yet been curbed.

Strengthening legal education

According to the Head of the Criminal Police Department of Nghe An Provincial Police: Many serious crimes that have occurred in Nghe An recently stemmed from minor conflicts in daily life. A lack of self-control, impulsive outbursts, and a failure to recognize the danger of words and actions led to extremely serious consequences.

In 2019, the province recorded 24 murders and 255 cases of intentional injury. The Nghe An Provincial Police Investigation Agency handled many of these cases, many of which stemmed primarily from simple reasons, with perpetrators often acting impulsively and losing self-control. Significantly, some of these crimes occurred during drinking sessions, when both the victims and perpetrators had consumed alcohol.

Because of trivial conflicts, these young men found themselves entangled in legal troubles for murder. Photo: Phuong Linh

Murder cases stemming from minor, momentary conflicts are challenging to prevent, as only a few hours pass between the conflict and the crime. Therefore, to gradually contribute to preventing, deterring, and reducing murders due to social causes, the Nghe An Police force has been focusing on implementing various solutions.

This includes coordinating agencies and departments to promote propaganda and education on law, ethics, lifestyle, and crime prevention awareness; combining general propaganda with targeted propaganda for high-risk groups prone to committing murder; developing forms of receiving, advising, and supporting legal matters, advising on handling situations, and mediating conflicts in residential communities; promoting the effectiveness of social organizations, grassroots mediation models, and the role of influential individuals in mediating conflicts to prevent the 발생 of crime.

The police also advised parents to further enhance their awareness of educating their children, promptly correcting any signs of excessive drinking, gambling, etc. From a societal perspective, departments, agencies, and organizations need to strengthen propaganda on culturally appropriate behavior and mutual tolerance among neighbors. And more than anyone else, each individual, in addition to complying with the law, needs to remain calm, consider the advantages and disadvantages, and exercise self-restraint before causing serious consequences.