The man used a stick to smash his cousin's skull.

On the morning of September 24th, the People's Court of Nghe An province tried the murder case against Hooc Van Mann (born in 1976), residing in Muong Tip commune, Ky Son district.

The victim in this case is Mr. Hooc Pho V. (born in 1964), Mann's cousin.

Earlier, at around 4 PM on August 13, 2018, Mr. Hooc Pho V. called Mann to his stepson's house to drink alcohol. Several other people were also present at the drinking session. After consuming 1.5 liters of alcohol, Mr. V., being drunk, chased everyone away. Mann saw Mr. V. overturn the food tray, so he got up and left.

At this point, Mr. V. punched Mann in the left arm and kicked him in the left side.

Hoc Van Mann. Photo: Tran Vu

The following afternoon, on his way back from bathing in the stream, Mann happened to see Mr. V. drunk, so he took him home. At this time, Mrs. Moong Thi Kham (Mr. V.'s common-law wife) gave Mann 10,000 dong to buy more alcohol. While drinking, Mr. V. said to Mann, "I made a mistake yesterday, let's be understanding." Mann accepted the apology and continued drinking with Mr. V.

After that, the group bought another 10,000 dong worth of liquor to continue drinking. When they were almost finished with the bottle, Mr. V. told everyone to leave, but Mrs. Kham wouldn't let them. V. said, "You guys are still here, do you want to mess with my wife?" Mann replied, "Don't say that, your wife is my sister."

At this point, Mr. V. punched Mằn in the head and kicked him in the left side. Mằn went outside and saw an 80 cm long wooden stick leaning against the wall. He picked it up and hit Mr. V. on the head, causing the victim to fall onto the bed, bleeding from his nose and ears. After assaulting him, Mằn went home to sleep.

Mr. V. was taken to the commune's health station for first aid and then transferred to Nghe An Friendship General Hospital for treatment. On August 23rd, he was discharged from the hospital. On August 25th, Mr. V. passed away.

The forensic examination concluded that Mr. Hooc Van V. died from a skull fracture. After learning of the victim's death, Mann surrendered to the police.

In court, the defendant admitted to the crime. He stated that he was angry about being attacked by Mr. V. without provocation, so he used a stick to hit the victim on the head. The defendant blamed it on the fact that he "had been drinking alcohol that day."

For the crime of "murder," Hooc Van Mann was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Regarding civil matters, the court ordered the defendant to compensate the victim's family for medical treatment and funeral expenses totaling over 143 million VND, and to provide monthly support of 500,000 VND to the victim's youngest daughter until she reaches 18 years of age.