Brother-in-law kills sister-in-law's relative because he suspects she was slandered and incited to leave the house
Lo Van Thai lived in his brother's house. After repeatedly hearing his sister-in-law's relatives speak ill of him and urge him to leave the house, Thai took a shovel and an iron pipe and hit the victim in the dangerous area, causing his death.
On August 20, Nghe An Provincial People's Court opened the first instance trial of Lo Van Thai (33 years old), residing in Son Ha village, Tam Quang commune, Nghe An, for the crime of "Killing".
Lo Van Thai lived in his brother's house, Lo Van Sao. On September 15, 2024, while Thai was eating and drinking at his brother's house, Mr. Kha Van T. (born in 1975) came to visit. Thai heard Mr. T. tell Mrs. Kha Thi Thanh (Mr. T's sister, Mr. Sao's wife) to chase Thai away and not let him stay with them anymore.
Being slandered and the fact that Thai had previously suspected Mr. T. of inciting Ms. Thanh to kick him out of the house many times made Thai angry. Thai went to the construction materials yard and took a shovel with a metal blade and hit Mr. T. many times on the body and head.
When the shovel blade fell out, Thai continued to hit Mr. T. on the head with the wooden handle. Only when Ms. Thanh ran in to stop him and Mr. T. promptly snatched the shovel handle away did Thai run away.
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However, Thai continued to use the metal tube to chase and hit Mr. T. The victim ran away, but Thai caught up and continued to hit Mr. T. in the head, causing him to fall to the ground and lose consciousness.
Mr. T. was seriously injured and was taken to many hospitals for emergency treatment. He returned home in early October to continue his recovery. At the time of the assessment, Mr. T.'s total body injury percentage was 41%. On January 17, 2025, Mr. T. died.
During the investigation, Lo Van Thai showed signs of depression and spoke little, so the authorities requested a forensic psychiatric assessment, concluding that before, during, and after committing the crime, Thai suffered from a late-onset psychotic disorder due to opium use. At the stated times, Thai had full cognitive ability but limited ability to control his behavior.
At the trial, the defendant admitted to using a shovel and an iron pipe to hit the victim. Regarding the reason for the crime, the defendant stated that he suspected Mr. T. had repeatedly badmouthed the defendant and his brother’s family to his sister-in-law. The defendant was afraid of being kicked out of the house, so he beat him to scare him.
However, according to the jury, the defendant committed the crime to the end. Although the victim tried to run away many times, the defendant still chased and beat her in dangerous areas.
Considering the defendant's behavior is dangerous to society, violates the law, and commits the crime of murder, the People's Court sentenced Lo Van Thai to 15 years in prison.