Death sentence upheld for escaped convict Nguyen Van Tinh.
Despite appealing for acquittal and a reduced sentence, death row inmate Nguyen Van Tinh and his eight accomplices were not accepted by the appellate court.
 Nguyen Van Tinh (far left) and his accomplices at the trial - Photo: MH |
On April 11, the Hanoi High Court of Appeal heard the appeal of Nguyen Van Tinh (one of the two death row inmates who escaped from solitary confinement) and eight accomplices in the case involving the trafficking of 1,182 blocks of heroin.
Tình and Lê Văn Thọ (aka Thọ "sứt") were both sentenced to death in two separate drug cases and are being held in a detention center awaiting appeal.
The escape of two death row inmates from T16 detention center of the Ministry of Public Security in early September 2017 caused a public outcry.
On September 6, 2017, through the detention center's loudspeaker system, Tinh and Tho learned about the stormy weather in Hanoi. They discussed and planned their escape.
The two death row inmates had prepared several items to carry out their escape plan from their solitary confinement cell during a storm, and they tore two blankets together to make a rope for their escape.
In the early hours of September 11th, two death row inmates escaped from their solitary confinement cells and jumped over the wall into the detention center.
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| Nguyen Van Tinh was arrested at the time of the death row inmate's escape from his solitary confinement cell - Photo: Giang Long |
The appeal hearing on April 11th addressed the case of trafficking 1,182 blocks of heroin in which Tinh and eight other accomplices participated, following appeals from the defendants claiming innocence and requesting reduced sentences.
The defendants were brought to trial for the illegal trafficking of narcotics and the illegal possession of military weapons.
According to the initial verdict, Nguyen Van Tinh knew Nguyen Thanh Tuan (a partner of "drug queen" Dang Minh Chau). Tinh knew Tuan was wanted for illegal drug trafficking but still went to Tuan's house in Van Ho district (Son La province) to visit.
Some time later, Tình joined the drug trafficking ring led by Châu and Tuân.
In this case, authorities determined that Tinh was involved in the buying and selling of 80 blocks of heroin.
Investigative documents show that in early November 2015, Tuan received an order for 80 blocks of heroin from Chau. Tuan instructed Tinh to help rent a house in Thach That district (Hanoi) to hide the drugs, disguising it as a confectionery warehouse.
After completing the task, Tuan instructed his subordinates to take 80 blocks of heroin hidden in the spare tire of the Fortuner they had brought from Van Ho back to the warehouse that Tinh had rented.
Here, Tinh and his accomplices cut open the tires of the car to extract the drugs and hid them in boxes of candy. When Chau and his gang came to retrieve the drugs, Tinh showed them the way and led them to the warehouse to get them.
For the above actions, at the first-instance trial, Tinh was sentenced to death by the Hanoi City People's Court for the crime of illegally trafficking narcotics.
At the appellate hearing, the representative of the Procuratorate requested the panel of judges to reject the appeal and uphold the first-instance judgment.
At the conclusion of the appeal hearing, the panel of judges of the Hanoi High Court rejected the appeals of 9 defendants and upheld the first-instance judgment.
Regarding the escape from solitary confinement, the Hanoi City Police Investigation Agency has also issued an investigation conclusion recommending the prosecution of Tinh and Tho "Sut" for the crime of escaping from detention.