Caught red-handed transporting 2 heroin cakes, still insisting on innocence in court
(Baonghean.vn) - While his accomplice confessed to his crime, Sua denied the crime even though he was caught red-handed transporting two heroin cakes.
After a week of deliberation, the People's Court of Nghe An province sentenced Lau Thi Sua (born in 1986), residing in Tri Le commune, Que Phong district, to life in prison for "Illegal transportation of narcotics"; Gia Y Ai (born in 1998, residing in the same locality) was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the same crime.
Previously, on February 14, the court brought the two defendants to the first instance trial. According to the investigation agency's documents, at around 10:00 a.m. on August 11, 2019, Sua drove a motorbike carrying Ai from his house in Muong Long village, Tri Le commune to the Cho Moi area, Chau Thon commune. Here, a Lao man asked Ai and Sua, "Are you H'Mong?". Gia Y Ai answered "yes", so the Lao continued to "ask you to give something to your friend". When Ai continued to ask what the thing was, the Lao replied, "2 cakes of drugs".
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| Two defendants at trial. Photo: Tran Vu |
At first, both Sua and Ai did not agree. But after the Lao promised that whoever agreed to go would be paid 3 million VND, they both accepted.
The Lao man then gave Gia Y Ai 2 heroin bars. Ai took them and hid them in the back of his pants. The Lao man then gave Sua 3 million VND and told him to “take them to the customer in Cam Muoi, Que Phong district. On the way, someone will pick up the goods and give the remaining money.”
After receiving the money, Sua gave Ai 500,000 VND, then drove Ai on a motorbike to deliver the drugs. At around 12:55 p.m., when the two arrived at Pieu village, Chau Thon commune, they were stopped by Que Phong district police for an administrative check.
At this time, Gia Y Ai showed unusual behavior and was afraid of revealing the drugs, so the police arrested him and made a record of the crime, finding 707.07 grams of drugs red-handed. Sua and Ai confessed that they were drugs they were transporting for hire for Lao people.
At the trial, defendant Gia Y Ai admitted to the crime as charged in the indictment. Ai asked for a lighter sentence because of her young age. Meanwhile, defendant Lau Thi Sua did not admit to the crime and denied the crime.
The panel of judges determined that this was a case of being caught red-handed. Although the defendant Sua denied the crime, the evidence collected along with the testimony during the investigation and at the trial were sufficient to prove the defendant's criminal behavior.