Life sentence for drug trafficking into coastal tourist area in Nghe An
(Baonghean.vn) - Wanting to make money quickly, Va Ba Phenh, residing in Muong Long commune (Ky Son), took the risk of hiring out drug carriers to receive 50 million VND in wages.
On May 14, the People's Court of Nghe An province held a first-instance trial against defendant Va Ba Phenh (born in 1980, residing in Muong Long commune, Ky Son, Nghe An) for the crime of illegally transporting drugs.
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| Defendant Vu Ba Phenh at the trial. Photo: Quynh An |
According to the indictment, at the end of 2017, during a trip, Phenh met a man named Nhenh. Nhenh promised that when he had a job, he would hire Phenh to do it so that Phenh could have money to spend.
By the end of 2018, Nhenh asked defendant Phenh to transport 6 heroin cakes from Vinh to Cua Lo, and after that Nhenh would pay Phenh 50 million VND. Seeing that the job was easy and the salary was high, Phenh immediately agreed.
After reaching an agreement, the two moved to a small motel in Le Loi Ward, Vinh City. There, Nhenh and Phenh met a man named Sinh. After Nhenh and Sinh finished talking, Nhenh gave Phenh a bag containing drugs and the three of them took a bus to Cua Lo.
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| Defendant Va Ba Phenh when caught red-handed. Photo: Quynh An |
At around 6:00 p.m. on December 21, 2018, when Phenh, Nhenh, and Sinh got off the car in front of the Hom market gate in block 10, Nghi Thuy ward, Cua Lo town, bringing goods to Cua Lo port tourist area to prepare for the transaction, the detectives approached and caught them red-handed. At the time of arrest, Nhenh and Sinh took advantage of the loophole to escape while Phenh was checked by the authorities.
Through examination, the 6 rectangular blocks in the bag that Phenh carried with him were 2,106.81 grams of heroin. The panel of judges determined that this was a dangerous act for society and should be severely punished under the law. However, seeing that the defendant had confessed honestly, they decided to reduce the sentence to life imprisonment for the defendant Va Ba Phenh based on the mitigating circumstances.
Because the background of the two subjects, Nhenh and Sinh, is unknown, the Investigation Police Agency does not have enough grounds to prosecute them criminally.