The day of his solitary sentencing for the man who murdered his sister-in-law.

Using shovels and iron pipes to beat people.

Lo Van Thai (born in 1992), residing in Son Ha village, Tam Quang commune (Nghe An province), is the fourth child in a family of five siblings. Having never attended school and being illiterate, Thai has mostly stayed within his village since growing up. Due to his limited cognitive abilities, Thai is also not quick-witted in work or communication.

In 2010, Thai lived with a woman from a neighboring commune as husband and wife, but they were not legally married. They had two children together, but their finances were unstable, so sometimes they lived with the paternal side of the family, and other times they relied on the maternal side for support.

In 2018, after Thai left to work elsewhere, his wife and children moved back to her parents' home. Upon returning, Thai stayed at his older brother Lo Van Sao's house. Although his brother and sister-in-law took him in, Thai refused to work and instead frequently resorted to drinking.

On the morning of September 15, 2024, Thai was eating and drinking alone at his brother's house when Mr. Kha Van T. (born in 1975) came to visit. Thai overheard Mr. T. telling Mrs. Kha Thi Thanh (Thai's sister-in-law and Mr. T.'s sister) to kick Thai out and not let him live with them anymore. Sitting inside, Thai heard this conversation and became angry. Coupled with his suspicion that Mr. T. had repeatedly spoken ill of him and wanted Mrs. Thanh to kick him out of the house, Thai committed the cruel act.

The man ran to the construction materials yard, grabbed a shovel with a metal blade, and repeatedly struck Mr. T. on the body and head. Taken by surprise, Mr. T. used his arms and legs to defend himself but could not avoid the blows. When the shovel blade fell off, Thai continued to hit Mr. T. on the head with the wooden handle. Only when Mrs. Thanh ran in to intervene, and Mr. T. managed to grab the shovel handle away, did Thai flee.

Nevertheless, he continued to chase after Mr. T with a metal pipe, beating him. The victim ran about 25 meters before falling down, and Thai struck him on the head, causing Mr. T to collapse to the ground unconscious. Immediately afterward, those present took the victim to several hospitals for emergency treatment, from district to provincial level.

By early October, Mr. T. was able to return home to continue his recovery. His total percentage of bodily injury at the time of the assessment was 41%. However, after more than three months of enduring beatings from Thai, the victim passed away on January 17, 2025.

During the investigation, Lo Van Thai showed signs of depression and was withdrawn, so the authorities requested a forensic psychiatric examination. The examination concluded that, before, during, and after committing the crime, Thai suffered from a late-onset, residual neurological disorder due to opium use. At the aforementioned times, Thai was fully capable of understanding the situation, but...limiting the ability to control behavior.

Sentencing day in solitude.

For the aforementioned crime, Lo Van Thai was prosecuted and brought to trial for murder. Unlike typical murder trials which are usually attended by large crowds, no one came to court at this trial. Even the victim's relatives requested to be tried in absentia and made no civil claims. The defendant's common-law wife and children were also absent.

Lô Văn Thái remained silent and reticent in response to the judges' questions. The defendant nodded in acknowledgment of using weapons such as shovels and iron pipes to strike the victim. When questioned about why he attacked the victim without provocation, the defendant stated, "Because the victim often spoke ill of me to my brother's and sister-in-law's families."

Thai suspected the victim had instigated his sister-in-law's family to evict him from the house, which angered him. "The defendant assaulted the person with the intention of threatening them," Thai testified in court.

"The defendant claims he only threatened the victim, but why did he continuously chase and attack him even after the victim tried to run away? The fact that he struck vulnerable areas like the head cannot be considered merely a threat," the judge questioned, and the defendant remained silent.

The defendant's legal assistant requested the court to consider mitigating circumstances. The defendant is in difficult circumstances, homeless, and living with his brother and sister-in-law. During his time living there, he was repeatedly slandered and incited to leave by his sister-in-law's relatives, which negatively impacted his mental state. Furthermore, threats from his common-law wife to leave him and marry someone else also caused him distress. These reasons led to the defendant's unstable mental state, resulting in the crime.

After the tragic incident, the defendant expressed deep remorse for his crime. In his final statement before the court adjourned to deliberate, the defendant pleaded for a reduced sentence so he could return to rebuild his life. He also expressed a desire to see his two children again, as he had had few opportunities to see them since his wife took them to live elsewhere.

The court determined that the defendant's actions were dangerous to society, violated the law, and constituted the crime of murder. However, several mitigating circumstances were considered, such as remorse, honest confession, and limited cognitive abilities. After considering all aspects of the case, the court sentenced Lo Van Thai to 15 years in prison for murder.

The trial concluded with a verdict for the defendant, but it also served as a warning to many others not to let anger and suspicion lead to tragic consequences… causing death and imprisonment for young people with their futures still ahead of them.