The young man received a sentence for assaulting someone without provocation and then going on the run.

The Nghe An Provincial People's Court recently held an appellate criminal trial to hear the case of Sam Minh Hop (born in 1996), residing in Chau Cuong commune, Quy Hop district, on the charge of "Intentional infliction of injury".

According to the indictment, at approximately 10 PM on February 2, 2019, Nguyen The L. (born in 2001), residing in Nghia Xuan commune, Quy Hop district, was driving a motorbike carrying two female friends home to Chau Cuong commune.

Upon arriving at the entrance gate of Nhoi village, Chau Cuong commune, we encountered a group of young men standing and playing, including: Dao Van Tai (born 1998), Nguyen Van Dat (born 1998), Quan Vi Than (born 2004), Ngan Van Hung (born 2002), Sam Minh Hop, and Quang Canh Tai (born 2004), all residing in Chau Cuong commune.

At this point, Tài said to the others in the group, "Hey guys, when that guy comes out, let's stop him and scare him for fun." Everyone agreed.

About 10 minutes later, when Mr. L. returned, Sam Minh Hop stopped his car and asked, "Where are you from?" As soon as Mr. L. answered, Hop repeatedly punched him in the face, while Tai filmed the incident with his phone and said, "Go ahead and beat him up, I'll just stand outside and film for fun."

Defendant Sam Minh Hop at the trial. Photo: Tran Vu

When L. fell into the ditch, the assailants continued to kick him in the head. At this point, Tài stopped filming and said, "Let him go," so the assailants stopped beating him. Afterwards, Hợp told L. to kneel down and apologize. Under duress, L. knelt down on the road to apologize and then left on his motorbike.

At that moment, two young men from the village passed by and asked what was going on. Dat replied, "This guy is ill-mannered, sir." One of them said, "Keep beating him," and then drove away on his motorbike. Nguyen The L. had only gone about 1-2 meters when Dat and Tai used a wooden stick to repeatedly hit him on the head and body until the stick broke and they threw it away.

Mr. L. was helped up by Hop and Tai, who assisted him with his motorbike, and then he rode his own motorbike home to sleep. On the morning of February 3, 2019, Mr. L. fell into a coma and was taken by his family to the Nghe An Provincial Friendship General Hospital for emergency treatment. He stayed there from February 3 to April 5 before being discharged. Afterwards, Mr. L. filed a request for a disability assessment and the initiation of a criminal case. Mr. Nguyen The L. was diagnosed with a 43% disability and traumatic brain injury.

The defendants Dao Van Tai, Nguyen Van Dat, Quan Vi Than, Ngan Van Hung, and Quang Canh Tai were brought to trial for the crime of "Intentional infliction of injury." Sam Minh Hop, however, fled after committing the crime and is now wanted by the police.

Later, Hop turned himself in and was brought to trial. At the first-instance trial, Hop was sentenced to 5 years and 6 months in prison for intentionally causing injury. He subsequently appealed, requesting a reduction in his sentence.

At the appeals court, the defendant turned to apologize to the victim, expressing remorse and asking for a reduced sentence.

After a comprehensive review of the case, the appellate court partially accepted the appeal of defendant Sam Minh Hop, amending the first-instance sentence from 5 years and 6 months to 5 years imprisonment for the crime of intentionally causing injury.