Man sentenced to death for... a photo posted on Facebook.

From the photo posted on Facebook

On January 3, 2015, the Anh Son District Police Investigation Agency received a report of a crime resulting in two casualties in Hamlet 3, Hoa Son Commune (Anh Son District). Upon receiving the report, detectives, along with the commune police force, arrived at the scene. The victims were identified as Ms. Dang Thi Van (born in 1980, residing in Hamlet 3, Hoa Son Commune, Anh Son District) and her child.

Immediately after the incident, the victim, Dang Thi Van, received timely first aid from local residents. However, due to the severity of her injuries, she died on the way to the hospital. Her daughter, Thai Thi Thuy Linh (6 months old), suffered a deep slash wound from her forehead down to her cheekbone, reaching the bone. She was transferred to Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital for surgery.

The incident happened so suddenly that the victim's family and the people of Hoa Son commune were shocked and worried. However, what shocked the people even more was that the perpetrator was none other than the victim's brother-in-law, someone who had once been part of the same family.

Phan Van Tuan was sentenced to life imprisonment at the first-instance trial. Photo: HSVA

Immediately, Phan Van Tuan (born in 1977, residing in Hoa Son commune, Anh Son district, Nghe An province) was summoned to the District Police Investigation Agency. Initially, Tuan stubbornly maintained that the incident occurred because the victim had attacked him first. Over time, using professional investigative techniques, the investigators managed to get Phan Van Tuan to confess and recount the details of the crime.

Reportedly, Phan Van Tuan married Dang Thi Kieu (also residing in Hoa Son commune, Anh Son district), the younger sister of Ms. Van. After living together for some time, disagreements frequently arose between the couple.

Around June 2014, due to marital conflicts, Phan Van Tuan beat and kicked his wife out of the house. Disheartened, Tuan's wife left for the South to work, while Tuan went to Laos to work as a construction laborer.

In late 2014, seeing a sensitive, obscured image of his wife on Facebook (an image automatically posted by a Facebook virus), and suspecting it was his wife, Tuan took a bus from Laos back home. He drove his motorbike straight to Ms. Van's house. The loud noise of the motorbike startled her, and Ms. Van said, "There's a small child sleeping inside; the loud noise might startle them," and chased Tuan out. Tuan replied, "I didn't know, please understand, I'm sorry," and wheeled his motorbike out of Ms. Van's house.

Suspecting that Kieu had gone to Laos for business, Tuan asked for Kieu's phone number so he could call his wife to clarify the situation, but Van replied that she didn't know Kieu's phone number.

Phan Van Tuan and Ms. Van continued to argue, with Tuan using his hands to choke her. At this point, Mr. Nguyen Van Quang, a neighbor, heard the commotion and came over to intervene, causing Tuan to leave. Upon arriving home, Tuan took a knife, tucked it into his waistband, and rode his motorbike back to Ms. Van's house to "settle the matter."

Tuan said, "Kieu is a prostitute in Laos, I'll show you." At that moment, Van was holding her baby and said she didn't know where her sister was.

Tuan said, "Is Kieu in Vietnam or Laos? Why is she on Facebook befriending a Laotian man with pictures of them having sex on the stairs? If she's in Laos, tell her she's back, don't let this affect everyone." Van refused to look at the photos and said, "Don't make false accusations."

Defendant Phan Van Tuan at the first-instance trial. Photo: HSVA

In a fit of rage and losing control, Tuan chased after and repeatedly stabbed Van with a knife. The victim fell to the ground, and neighbors rushed in to intervene, but he broke free and continued to stab his wife. Despite being shielded by her mother, Linh was also stabbed by Tuan, the knife striking her from forehead to cheek.

After committing the crime, Tuan fled. People quickly took Ms. Van and her niece Linh to the hospital for emergency treatment, but due to the severity of her injuries, Ms. Van died on the way. The conclusion of the Criminal Technical Department of the Nghe An Provincial Police showed that the victim, Dang Thi Van, died from shock and acute blood loss due to multiple injuries, a fractured and severed skull, and severed brain tissue. Linh was transferred to a provincial hospital for emergency treatment and was determined to have suffered 15% health damage.

Late tears

On May 29, 2015, the People's Court of Nghe An province held a first-instance trial for defendant Phan Van Tuan on charges of...KillingDespite the scorching sun, the family of the victim, Dang Thi Van, arrived at the court early. Thai Van Minh (Van's husband) and his son, dressed in simple clothes and carrying portraits of his wife and mother, came to demand revenge.

Relatives of the victims arrived very early to attend the trial of Phan Van Tuan. Photo: HSVA

Little Thai Thi Thuy Linh was too young to understand her pain; she lay asleep on a relative's shoulder, her face still showing shock as the slash wound inflicted by her uncle stretched from her forehead down to her cheek.

"It's so sad, sister. She lost her mother when she was only 6 months old. Now the cut has turned into a keloid scar, and she'll have to live with it on her face for the rest of her life. Since her mother died, her father has struggled to raise the two children, and the little girl has come to live with me…," the child's aunt sighed.

The stifling heat of nearly 40 degrees Celsius made the courtroom even more oppressive, and it seemed even hotter when the presiding judge questioned the defendant: "Why did you stab Ms. Van?" Tuan stammered, "I was so angry because I asked for my wife's phone number many times, but Ms. Van wouldn't give it to me." The judge continued, "Even if they knew but didn't say anything, that's their right. You lived with Ms. Kieu without a marriage certificate. You abused your wife regularly, and when she left home, whose fault is that? You should know how you lived that made your wife leave. Did you drink alcohol, beat, or abuse your wife?" Tuan bowed his head in silence.

After a long pause, Tuan blurted out in court: "Because my wife was having an affair with someone else, when I saw her befriending and posting inappropriate images on Facebook, I was furious and asked for her phone number to tell her to delete those pictures. But..."

Upon hearing this confession, those present at the trial appeared very surprised. The presiding judge questioned: "Just because of a photo on Facebook that was infected with a virus, the defendant killed his wife's sister and injured his nephew. Was it worth it?" "No, I was wrong," Tuan said, bowing his head in remorse.

At the trial, Tuan sincerely confessed to his crime. The representative of the People's Procuracy of Nghe An province requested...life imprisonmentSentenced to 2-3 years in prison for murder and 2-3 years in prison for intentional infliction of injury.

Mr. Thai Van Minh brought a photo of his wife to court to "demand her life back." Photo: HSVA

Mr. Thai Van Minh, the legal representative of the victim, requested the court to sentence Tuan to death. “My wife died tragically, my child is still so young, and Tuan didn't spare her either. If Tuan is allowed to live, he will continue to cause harm. Now we don't need anything else, just a life for a life,” Mr. Minh stated.

When given the opportunity to speak his final words, Tuan asked the court for permission to turn around and look at Minh's family. He mumbled an apology, but it was not accepted by the victim's family. Tuan hoped the court would consider sparing his life so he could have a chance to return home to raise his children and atone for his mistakes to Van's family.

The judges adjourned for deliberation, and Tuan was led back to the defendant's seat. His young child was brought by a family member and stood about two meters away. He turned his head and called out, "Son, it's me, Dad. Forgive me..." Seeing his child brought by his family, Tuan called out to his child, then buried his face in his rough, dark hands and sobbed uncontrollably in the courtroom.

The court determined that Tuan's actions were exceptionally serious, depriving another person of their life, inflicting injuries on a defenseless child, and disrupting social order and security, thus requiring a severe sentence. However, during the investigation and trial, Tuan confessed honestly and showed remorse, and his family partially compensated the victim for the damages.

After considering the aggravating and mitigating circumstances, the court sentenced Phan Van Tuan to life imprisonment for murder and 3 years imprisonment for intentional infliction of injury. Combining both sentences, Tuan must serve a life sentence. In addition, Tuan must compensate Minh's family for damages exceeding 120 million VND and is responsible for providing child support of 600,000 VND per child per month to Minh's three children until they reach adulthood.

Outside in the scorching sun, Tuan's thin, dark-skinned aunt stood weeping as Tuan was handcuffed. She tried to give him a packet of sticky rice and a box of sausages, but couldn't. "I just want to see him one last time. I'm old. Oh dear, all because of a photo on Facebook, it's led to this," she lamented through her tears. Tuan turned his head to look at his aunt, who stood frozen in the sun, and suddenly burst into tears. Because of his lack of understanding, Tuan had let things get out of hand.

Seeing his young child brought in by family members, Tuan called out to his child, then buried his face in his rough, dark hands, sobbing uncontrollably in the courtroom. (Photo: HSVA)

However, finding the sentence given to Tuan to be too lenient and not commensurate with the crime he committed, the victim's family filed an appeal with the High People's Court.

On January 11, 2016, at the headquarters of the Nghe An Provincial People's Court, the Hanoi High People's Court held an appeal hearing and sentenced defendant Phan Van Tuan. At the appeal hearing, the court found Tuan's criminal act to be exceptionally dangerous, of a thuggish nature, and demonstrating a deliberate intent to commit the crime to the end, thus rendering him beyond rehabilitation. Therefore, the appellate panel accepted the victim's appeal, amended the first-instance judgment, and sentenced Tuan to death for murder.