Police chase and arrest a pickup truck carrying fireworks at midnight.

After a period of surveillance, at approximately 24:00 on January 5th, the Criminal Investigation Team of Vinh City Police received a report that a suspect from Nghe An province, carrying dozens of firework packages of 36 firecrackers each, manufactured abroad, had appeared on a North-South passenger bus about 8 km south of Ben Thuy 2 Bridge.

The suspect, Nguyen Van Manh. Photo: Hai Chau

That same night, the leaders of the Criminal Investigation Agency of Vinh City Police deployed three task forces to implement a plan to inspect and apprehend the suspect red-handed. The first task force was stationed north of Ben Thuy Bridge 1 and 2, the second task force was stationed in the Vinh bypass area, in Nghi Loc district. The remaining task force was tasked with following the passenger bus.

As the passenger bus with license plate 18B… crossed the Ben Thuy 2 bridge, the detectives spotted a pickup truck with license plate 37C: 22035 following closely behind. Assuming the contraband on the bus would be delivered to the pickup truck driver in Nghi Loc district, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Huu Cuong, Deputy Chief of Police of Vinh City, directed the task force to tighten the cordon.

As the North-South passenger bus stopped in the town of Nghi Loc district, a pickup truck pulled up right next to it, quickly loaded a box of goods onto the truck bed, and sped away into the night.

Smuggled fireworks seized. Photo: Hai Chau

Suspecting he was being followed by law enforcement, the driver of the pickup truck drove onto a rural road, disregarding the potential for an accident. When he reached the main road, at the Quan Hanh intersection in Nghi Loc district, a task force from the Criminal Investigation Team of Vinh City Police stopped him for inspection. This was at approximately 1:20 AM on January 6, 2018.

When confronted, the suspect, taking advantage of the darkness, opened the passenger seat and escaped.

Upon inspecting the pickup truck's cargo bed, authorities discovered a cardboard box containing 30 packages of fireworks, each containing 36 firecrackers, manufactured abroad.

At the police station, the driver identified himself as Nguyen Van Manh (28 years old, residing in Nghi Khanh commune, Nghi Loc district). He stated that all the fireworks were being transported by hired passenger bus to Nghe An province for sale during the 2018 Lunar New Year.

Pickup trucks used to transport artillery. Photo: Hai Chau

Currently, the Vinh City Police are holding Nguyen Van Manh, his pickup truck, and all the fireworks in custody to facilitate the investigation, clarification, and legal processing, while also deploying forces to apprehend the fugitive.

This is one of four extremely brazen cases of illegal fireworks trafficking that were busted by Vinh City Police during the provincial police leadership's crackdown on crime to ensure security and order before, during, and after the 2018 Lunar New Year.