The ultimate pain of a woman whose husband and son are both in prison.
The wife was devastated when her husband became addicted to drugs and was sentenced to prison. Her greatest comfort was her children. However, one of them also became addicted and was constantly in and out of prison, leaving her heartbroken and weeping uncontrollably.
The child spiraled into sin.
Ha Van Doan (32 years old), residing in Muong Ngoc commune, Que Phong district, is the eldest son of Mrs. Loc TB (52 years old) and her husband. Unlike his peers, Doan dropped out of junior high school and soon fell into a life of partying and reckless behavior. From his first attempts at drugs, Doan became addicted to this banned substance without realizing it.
In 2009, at the age of 17, Ha Van Doan darkened his life with an 18-month prison sentence for "illegally possessing narcotics." After his release from prison (in 2014), this young man relapsed into pickpocketing and was sentenced to 9 months in prison for the same crime.Theft of property".
After serving his prison sentence and returning to the community, Doan relapsed into drug addiction. Therefore, in 2018, the Que Phong District People's Court imposed a mandatory drug rehabilitation program on Doan for a period of 18 months.
But those measures didn't seem to help him break free from heroin. He still sought out the banned substance to satisfy his needs. Therefore, in 2020, Ha Van Doan was sentenced to 30 months in prison for "illegally possessing narcotics."
After his past missteps, Doan's family always hoped he would turn over a new leaf. Especially considering his young child, who had lived for many years without a mother and with a father frequently in prison. However, the young father only sank deeper into his wrongdoing. This time, Doan spent a large sum of money trafficking drugs and was arrested.
According to the indictment, while in prison, Ha Van Doan befriended a fellow inmate from Ha Tinh province named Nguyen Van Ky. In late August 2023, after being released from prison, Ky called Doan to inquire about purchasing 30 packets of methamphetamine, agreeing on a price of 80 million VND. Ky transferred 55 million VND upfront, promising to pay the remaining amount upon receiving the drugs.
To obtain drugs to sell to customers, Đoán contacted a man named Vừ (whose identity and background are unknown) in Tri Lễ commune, Quế Phong district, to buy 90 packets of methamphetamine for 92 million VND.
On the morning of September 10, 2023, at Vu's camp, the two parties conducted a drug transaction. Doan intended to sell 30 packages of drugs to customers and keep the rest for later sale. However, his drug dealing scheme was exposed by authorities. Ha Van Doan was arrested by the police along with over 1.8 kg of drugs.
For the aforementioned offenses, Doan was prosecuted and brought to trial for "Illegal trafficking of narcotics." At the trial held at the end of October, the defendant admitted to the act of buying and selling drugs.
Regarding the motive for the crime, the defendant stated that after being released from prison, due to a lack of stable employment and a desire for quick money, he trafficked drugs despite knowing that it was illegal. The defendant presented his difficult circumstances, including the death of his wife and the fact that his child is still in school and he is living alone, requesting the court to consider mitigating circumstances and reduce his sentence.
The pain of a woman whose husband and son are in prison.
Sitting silently in court during her son's trial, the mother, over 50 years old, repeatedly bowed her head in sorrow. This wasn't the first time she'd been humiliated in court, as her son had been tried many times before. It was this same son who had caused her so much heartache over the years.
Today, attending the trial, the mother not only requested a reduced sentence for her son but also hoped the court would consider returning the motorbike that Doan used to carry out the drug trafficking. According to her, the motorbike was her property. When her son took it to deliver the drugs, she was completely unaware of his actions. "That motorbike is now my most valuable asset," she stated before the court.
In the courthouse hallway, the mother burst into tears when someone mentioned her husband and son. Not only was her son imprisoned for drug-related offenses, but her husband was also serving a sentence at a prison in Quang Binh province. The woman sadly shared that her husband was currently serving a 13-year sentence for drug-related crimes. Remarkably, prior to this imprisonment, he had also been incarcerated for drug-related offenses.
Both her husband and son were involved with drugs, leaving her heartbroken. For years, she has single-handedly shouldered the burden of supporting her family, caring for her orphaned grandchild, her elderly mother, and arranging visits to her husband in prison.
She then added that she had to rush her time to attend the court hearing because a few days earlier, her mother had suffered a stroke and was currently being treated at the provincial hospital. “So many sad things have happened to my family at once that I don’t know how to cope. I’m taking care of my elderly mother while grieving over my husband and son’s imprisonment. Not to mention the uncertain future of my grandchild now that his mother is gone and his father is in prison,” she said, her voice choked with emotion as she sighed.
Sitting a few rows away, the defendant Doan's young child, born in 2009, repeatedly sobbed when she saw her father. Her mother had passed away, and her father was frequently in and out of prison, so she had to live in a deprived environment since childhood. Although her relatives always encouraged her to study hard and make up for the lack of affection, the pain she had endured was too much for a young girl.
Meeting his daughter in such a difficult situation, Doan could only offer an apology and encourage her to study hard and obey her grandmother. The young father promised his daughter that he would try his best to reform so he could return home soon. However, due to the large quantity of drugs, Ha Van Doan was sentenced to life imprisonment by the court for the crime of "Illegal trafficking of narcotics".
Upon hearing the sentence for her son, the mother could only lower her head to the chair, helpless as if the whole world had collapsed before her eyes. Both her son and husband were imprisoned for drug-related offenses, multiplying the pain in her heart many times over…