He spent 2 billion VND to buy 15 kg of crystal meth.
(Baonghean.vn) - Hoang Nghia Van was hired by a woman to buy 15 kg of drugs for 2 billion VND and readily agreed. He then contacted two accomplices to transport the drugs from Laos to Vietnam.
On the morning of February 24th, the People's Court of Nghe An province opened a first-instance criminal trial to hear the cases of defendants Hoang Nghia Van (born in 1975), residing in Hung Binh ward, Vinh City; Cho Mua, also known as Mua Ba Cho (born in 1983), residing in Lac Xao town, Kham Cot district, Bolikhamsai province (Laos); and Mua Ba Va (born in 1988), residing in Na Ngoi commune, Ky Son district, on charges of "illegally trading narcotics".
According to investigative documents, around March 2019, Hoang Nghia Van was working as a laborer in Ho Chi Minh City when he met a woman named Nguyen Thi Ly. During their acquaintance, this woman asked Van to go to Nghe An to buy drugs, promising him 17 million VND as payment. One month later, Van returned to Nghe An to live.
On May 9, 2019, Van traveled to Bolikhamsai province (Laos) to hold a wedding ceremony with a woman. There, he met Cho Mua, a relative on his wife's side, and asked to buy drugs, which was agreed upon. After the wedding, Van returned to Vietnam and informed Ms. Ly that he had found the "goods." Ly said she would send Van 2 billion VND to buy 15 kg of methamphetamine (ketamine). Van then contacted Cho Mua and arranged to meet in Vinh City to receive the money.
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| The defendants at the trial. Photo: Tran Vu |
On May 27, 2019, following Ms. Ly's instructions, Hoang Nghia Van went to a gold shop in Vinh City to receive 2 billion VND. Van exchanged the money for 80,000 USD and 80 million VND, then gave it to Mua.
The following evening, Cho Mua took the money to buy drugs from a Laotian man. Afterward, Cho Mua called Mua Ba Va and hired him to go with him to receive the drugs and deliver them to the customer, promising him $2,000. Mua agreed. On May 31st, Cho Mua went into the forest to receive the drugs from the Laotian man.
At 3:00 AM on June 1st, Cho Mua woke Mua Ba Va up and gave him $2,000 as payment. Mua then personally drove the motorbike, with Va sitting behind him holding the drugs. When they reached the center of Huong Son district, they were caught red-handed by the police.
At the same time, the police arrested Hoang Nghia Van while he was waiting to receive the "goods" in Pho Chau town (Huong Son).
At the trial, the defendant Van admitted to the crime. The defendant, who had previously served time in prison for drug-related offenses, admitted to reoffending due to greed.
Meanwhile, defendant Cho Mua testified that he had invited Mua Ba Va to go with him to receive and deliver drugs. However, Va claimed that Cho Mua only invited him to do some work and did not mention transporting drugs.
During the trial, the two defendants shared the same defense lawyer, their testimonies contradicted each other, and also contradicted Mua Ba Va's testimony during the investigation. To ensure objectivity, the panel of judges decided to postpone the trial and invite defense lawyers for each defendant.