Neighbors beaten with hoe after suspected 'removing bank causing fish to die'
Just because he suspected his neighbor of removing the earthen bank and letting dirty water into his pond, causing the fish to die, Phan Trong Tuong used a hoe to hit Mr. M on the head and hands many times. Tuong's actions not only put him in jail but also damaged the neighborhood relationship.
On August 27 and 28, Nghe An Provincial People's Court opened the first instance trial of defendant Phan Trong Tuong (born 1956), residing in Yen Thanh commune, Nghe An, for the crime of murder.
Phan Trong Tuong and Mr. Phan Trong M. (born in 1971, the victim in the case) are cousins and live near each other.
On the afternoon of May 7, 2024, Tuong took a hoe and went to the ditch behind his house to build a bank to prevent water from flowing into his pond and rice field.
After building the bank, Tuong saw Mr. M. standing at the head of the ditch. Before that, seeing many fish in his pond die, Tuong suspected that Mr. M. had removed the bank, causing dirty water from Mr. M.'s duck pond to flow into the fish pond.
Tuong immediately went to where Mr. M. was standing, cursing as he walked. When he got there, Tuong took a hoe and hit Mr. M. on the head. Out of reflex, Mr. M. raised his arm to block the injury. Tuong continued to hit Mr. M. and then went home.
The victim, who suffered injuries to his head and arm, was taken to multiple hospitals for emergency treatment and received long-term treatment. The investigation agency determined that the victim's body injury rate was 56%.
During the investigation, because of suspicion that Phan Trong Tuong was mentally ill, the authorities sent him for an autopsy. The conclusion was that before, during and after committing the crime, Tuong suffered from mild dementia, with full cognitive ability but limited ability to control his behavior.
At the trial, the defendant initially stated that he did not intentionally hit the victim but mistook the rice field for Mr. M. Later, the defendant admitted to hitting the victim but said he was provoked by Mr. M.
The defendant expressed remorse for his crime and apologized to the victim. The victim requested nearly 200 million VND in compensation. Before the trial took place, the defendant had influenced the victim’s family to compensate 80 million VND.
The jury concluded that Tuong had used a hoe to hit the victim in a dangerous area because of baseless speculation. The victim survived because he received timely emergency care.
The victim is a severely disabled person (having lost an arm), a vulnerable person in society, but the defendant still committed the crime, which is an aggravating circumstance. However, it is also necessary to consider some mitigating circumstances for the defendant such as: being awarded a certificate of merit during his time as a police officer, the defendant being an elderly person, etc.
Considering the case as a whole, the People's Court sentenced Phan Trong Tuong to 10 years in prison (higher than the Procuracy's recommendation) for murder.
