The tricks of these "female gangsters"

(Baonghean) - To apprehend lawbreakers, the intelligence and judgment of security forces are extremely important. These individuals are willing to use many sophisticated tricks and schemes to try to escape, especially female criminals...

1.A few years ago, in a ward located in the center of Vinh City, there was a rather attractive coffee shop for those who liked tranquility. The spacious shop, situated in a small alley, displayed an impressively decorated sign with a very suggestive name: "Rả Rích" (meaning "Delightful"). One summer morning in 2013, just minutes after opening, the owner of "Rả Rích," named Thảo, was startled when a group of about 3-4 police officers stormed into the shop. After hearing the local police officer approach, greet her, and explain the reason, she became flustered:

"Is...is she a criminal, sir?" The woman only managed to utter that much before her maid was handcuffed and escorted out the back door by two female police officers.

At this point, the owner of the restaurant regained her composure and recalled: Nearly a year ago, a pleasant-looking employee from the "Rả Rích" restaurant asked to see her and said, "Excuse me, ma'am, could you hire me?" Seeing that the girl was attractive but a bit older, Mrs. Thảo immediately said, "The restaurant does need waitstaff, but (her voice faltered), this job might not be suitable for me." The applicant pleaded, "Yes! Yes! I understand, I can't do table service. I'd like to do cleaning, sweeping, and washing filters and glasses." Seeing her pleading expression and thinking about the possibility of rotating staff between these two jobs, Mrs. Thảo nodded.

Police officers from Nghe An Province discuss operational plans after apprehending a wanted suspect.

Since Tram arrived, the owner of the "Ra Rich" coffee shop felt she had gained a valuable assistant. She worked quite carefully and meticulously. From the tables and chairs, teapots and cups, to the floor, doors, and toilets, everything was kept neat and clean… Especially, Tram didn't often ask for time off like the younger girls, and she rarely went out, preferring to eat and sleep at the shop, so it was very convenient to call her if needed. Tram confided in the owner that her hometown was in Ky Anh (Ha Tinh province), and due to family problems, her husband had left to start a business in the South, and her children had grown up and gone to work far away, so she had no choice but to come here. Tram also sincerely said, "Please don't make me go to the crowded area. I'm very embarrassed because I don't want acquaintances to recognize me here. You know my situation." Seeing that this woman was kind, honest, and in such a difficult situation, the owner believed her. For her, what mattered was that the girl did her job well and didn't complain about her wages. She didn't pay much attention to anything else.

A few days after the employee was arrested, she was summoned to the police station by the local police. She was fined for failing to comply with regulations on temporary residence registration. She felt lucky, because she almost committed the crime of "concealing a crime." The local police officer said: Nguyen Thi Tram is originally from Xuan An commune, Nghi Xuan district (Ha Tinh province), grew up in Ky Anh, and has lived with her husband in Vinh City for many years. A few years ago, Tram was involved in a job placement and job-seeking scam. When the case was exposed and her accomplices were arrested, she quickly escaped and was wanted by the Nghe An Provincial Police. After hiding in the Central Highlands for a while, in early 2014, Nguyen Thi Tram returned to Vinh City. She wandered around the city looking for a place to hide. Seeing a job advertisement posted at the "Ra Rich" restaurant, she came up with a bold idea and applied for a job there. She thought the police would hardly suspect she was hiding near her home, in a coffee shop just a few hundred meters from the police station. To ensure her safety, she completely cut off all contact with her relatives. They say, "the most dangerous place is the safest place." She planned to hide there for a few more years, then find a way to contact her husband and move elsewhere. And the police would forget about her. Who would have thought...

2.Meanwhile, Vi Thi Mai (born in 1962), residing in Ba village, Huu Kiem commune (Ky Son district), a link in a transnational drug trafficking ring, planned to "flee and get away." In 2013, her business was exposed, and Vi Thi Mai crossed the border to Vientiane, the capital of Laos. There, she adopted the name Lang Thi Tai and asked locals to help her obtain Laotian citizenship.

With legal documents, she tried every way to get acquainted with an official at an administrative agency in Xikhot Tabong district (Vientiane Capital). He was older but single, so they soon became husband and wife. The husband believed his wife was Vietnamese, that her husband had died, and that she had a daughter living with her maternal grandparents while he came to Vietnam to work long-term. Sympathizing with the Vietnamese girl, he and his family had no suspicions whatsoever.

For 11 years, the couple lived peacefully, loved and trusted by those around them. However, Mai couldn't have any more children, so her husband's family told her to return to Vietnam and bring her daughter to live with them for a more comfortable life. Thinking that the Vietnamese police no longer "remembered" her, she took the risk and returned home.

In early 2014, through various sources, they learned that Vi Thi Mai, a wanted fugitive, was hiding in Laos. A special investigation, code-named 305M, was launched, and a team of detectives was dispatched to cooperate with the Laotian police to apprehend this "female criminal" and bring her to justice.

After the Vietnamese police explained and presented evidence that his wife was a dangerous drug trafficker using a fake name and posing as an honest woman, the Laotian officer was devastated. He was even more astonished to learn that his wife had six children with her previous husband by the age of 24. Except for their youngest daughter, who had been brought to Vietnam only a few years ago, the others were being raised by their father in Huu Kiem commune, Ky Son district.

Recounting this story, a female police officer with over a decade of experience in apprehending wanted criminals remarked: Once they have committed a crime, to evade the law they are no different from animals being hunted: cunning as foxes, shrewd as snakes, and in many cases, like tigers and leopards cornered.

Viet Long