Murder at a wedding over… laying out a mat.
(Baonghean.vn) - Although they were both attending a wedding, a dispute arose between Mạnh and Mr. Ch. over who would use a mat to play cards. During the argument, Mạnh used a knife to kill his neighbor.
On September 25th, the People's Court of Nghe An province opened a trial to hear the case against defendant Pham Van Manh (born in 1983), residing in Van Loi commune, Quy Hop district, for the crime of "Killing"The victim in this case is Mr. Bach Van Ch. (born in 1967).
Manh and Mr. Ch. knew each other. On the afternoon of April 7, 2023, both went to a neighbor's house to attend a wedding. After eating and drinking, Ch. suggested that Manh "spread out a mat so we can play cards," but Manh disagreed, leading to an argument between the two.
Manh went to the well, took a large knife, and hid it inside his shirt. When he returned and saw Mr. Ch., Manh went up to him and said, "You said to go out, so go."
During the argument, Mạnh pulled out a knife and stabbed Mr. Ch. Although the victim ran away, Mạnh chased after him with the knife and stabbed him in the back.
Seeing this, Mạnh's wife and a neighbor ran to intervene but were unsuccessful. As Mạnh continued to stab the victim, his wife rushed forward and hugged him, causing both of them to fall.
Despite his wife's attempts to stop him, Mạnh lunged forward and attacked Mr. Ch. His wife bravely managed to grab the knife from his hand, and at that moment, a neighbor intervened and disarmed him.
Although the victim was rushed to the hospital, due to the severity of the injuries, he died from acute circulatory failure; the penetrating chest wound punctured the pericardium and the heart.
At the trial, Mạnh stated that when the victim asked him to bring out the mat to play cards, he refused because he didn't want to disrupt the wedding atmosphere of the host family.
"Because the victim threatened to 'kill you if you step outside,' I became angry. I was also drunk that day, so I lost control of my actions," the defendant explained to the court.
Following the incident, Mạnh's family compensated the victim's family with over 42 million VND for funeral expenses. At the trial, both sides agreed that the defendant Mạnh would pay an additional 180 million VND to the victim's family for emotional distress.
The panel of judges determined that, in this case, the defendant's deliberate intent to commit the crime to the end was an aggravating circumstance. However, several mitigating circumstances should also be considered, such as surrendering to the authorities, making honest confessions, showing remorse, and the family having fully compensated the victim for emotional distress.
Therefore, the court sentenced the defendant Pham Van Manh to 20 years in prison. Regarding the civil aspect, the court ordered the defendant to pay the victim's mother 1.5 million VND per month until her death.