U60 man gets 20 years in prison for using gold chain to smuggle drugs
(Baonghean.vn) - Ms. Mai recklessly joined a drug trafficking ring despite knowing that her son and son-in-law were drug addicts. On the day of her trial, she confessed that she committed the crime out of rashness despite being nearly 60 years old.
Woman used gold necklace to sell drugs with the calculation of profit of 7000 USD
(Baonghean.vn) - Before deciding to pawn a gold necklace to have money to buy drugs to sell for profit, this woman calculated that if this business was successful, she would pocket 7,000 USD.
After a lengthy deliberation, on the afternoon of August 28, the People's Court of Nghe An province sentenced defendant Pham Thi Mai (born 1960), residing in Nghi Kim commune, Vinh city, to 20 years in prison for the crime of "Illegal drug trafficking".
As reported, because she had lived and worked in Laos for a while, around February 2019, when a woman from Huong Son district (Ha Tinh) introduced her to someone who needed to buy drugs, Mai immediately took the phone number to connect.
In early March 2019, Mai called Hinh (Nghia Dan district, the person she was introduced to buy drugs) to discuss the details of the drug transaction. This woman ordered 2 heroin cakes from Mai for 15,000 USD.
On March 25, Mai met a man named Khum (Laotian) at her shop in Cham Phon district (Savannakhet province, Laos) to buy 2 heroin cakes, agreeing on the price of 8,000 USD. 2 days later, Khum brought 2 drug cakes to sell to Mai. After receiving the "goods", Mai carefully stored them in her shop and called to inform Hinh.
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| Defendant Pham Thi Mai at the trial. Photo: Tran Vu |
At 8:00 p.m. the same day, Mai and Hinh and his wife stopped their car to have dinner at a restaurant in Quynh Hong commune (Quynh Luu district). While eating, Hinh's husband said he had to change cars, so Mai went to the car, got her bag and went into the restaurant.
When Pham Thi Mai was leaving her bag containing 2 heroin bars next to her to continue eating, she was arrested by the police. Taking advantage of the loophole, the woman named Hinh escaped. The seized evidence was 2 heroin bars weighing 687.07 grams.
At the trial, the defendant admitted to the crime as charged in the indictment. Regarding the money used to buy drugs, Mai said she pawned her gold necklace and borrowed more money.
Mai said her son and son-in-law were both drug addicts. “The defendant committed the crime out of impulse,” Mai told the court.
The panel of judges determined that the defendant’s actions were motivated by greed. The defendant is old, lives in the city, and is often informed about the harmful effects and strict regulations of the law on drugs, but still commits a crime that shows contempt for the law. Considering the case as a whole, the panel of judges sentenced Pham Thi Mai to the above sentence.
