Drugs stuffed in underwear brought from Ha Tinh to Vinh to sell

On the morning of September 16, Nghe An Provincial People's Court opened a first-instance criminal trial of defendant Trinh Van Linh (born 1992), residing in Hung Nhan commune, Hung Nguyen district, for the crime of "Illegal drug trafficking".

Subject Trinh Van Linh in court. Photo: Tran Vu

According to the investigation agency's documents, at about 7:30 a.m. on April 10, 2019, Trinh Van Linh went from his house to Pho Chau town, Huong Son district (Ha Tinh) and met Tran Huu Duy and said: "I just got out of prison and have no money to spend. I'm in trouble and need your help." Duy said, "I don't have money either. You take 6 dan (meaning pink phien) and sell it for money to spend."

Linh hid the drugs in her underwear and took a bus to Vinh City, then left the drugs on the side of the road, in block 13, Le Loi ward and went home.

When someone asked to buy, Linh agreed to sell 5 packages of opium for 55 million VND, and the remaining package, Linh hid in her jacket to sell later if anyone asked to buy.

At around 5:00 p.m. the same day, Linh arrived at the meeting point to deliver drugs to the customer when he was discovered by Nghi Loc District Police, caught red-handed, and seized 5 packages of drugs weighing 99.88 grams.

After Linh was arrested, on the afternoon of May 15, the subject's mother and brother went to the Nghe An Provincial Police Detention Center to visit and send Linh some things. In the bag was a jacket in which Linh had previously hidden a package of drugs weighing 19,700 grams.

In court, the defendant admitted all his crimes. Linh said he had previously served an 8-year prison sentence for “Robbery” and had only been released from prison for 2 months.

Considering the case as a whole, the People's Court sentenced Trinh Van Linh to 20 years in prison for "Illegal drug trafficking".

In this case, there is also a subject named Duy, who was not present in the locality, and Linh's only statement is not enough to charge Duy. The investigation agency will continue to clarify, and when there is enough evidence, it will be handled later.

As for the defendant's brother and mother, because they did not know Linh was hiding drugs in her shirt, they were sent to the Detention Center, so there is no basis for prosecution.