Man sentenced to death for murdering, raping Hanoi woman

The Hanoi People's Court on Wednesday sentenced Hoang Minh Hao, a native of the northern Bac Giang Province, for "rape, murder, theft, and robbery."

Hoang Minh Hao at a trial in Hanoi, Sept. 18, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Danh Lam

According to the indictment, on Oct. 29, 2023, Hao traveled 60 km from Bac Giang to Hanoi and rented a room in Thanh Xuan District. During this time, he conceived the idea of stealing from other people to cover his expenses, as he neither attended school nor held a job.

Around 2 a.m. on Jan. 21, Hao found an unlocked motorbike on the ground floor of the rental complex. After unsuccessfully trying to open its storage compartment, he returned to his room and watched videos on how to do so. The following night, he successfully opened the compartment, disabled the security camera, and stole the motorbike, later having a new key made.

Hao pawned the motorbike for VND10 million ($410), used VND4 million for rent, and traveled to his girlfriend's hometown in Ha Tinh Province in central Vietnam for the Tet holiday.

When the motorbike's owner reported the theft, the landlord became suspicious and confronted Hao, who admitted to the crime and promised to recover the bike after Tet. For this, Hao was charged with theft.

The more serious crimes occurred after the holiday. On Feb. 16, Hao returned to Hanoi from Ha Tinh and searched for a new rental online. He found a listing posted by 21-year-old Le Thi Thuy Linh, an apartment manager, for a room on Cau Giay Street. He arranged to view the room at 5 p.m. that evening.

Linh showed him the room on the third floor, but Hao could not afford it. Later, he borrowed money from a friend and met Linh again at 8 p.m. to put down a deposit. When they returned to the apartment, Hao noticed the complex was nearly empty, as many tenants had not yet returned from their Tet holiday. He also saw that Linh was alone and carrying valuables, which led him to decide to rob her.

After Linh opened the room's door, she sat outside in the hallway, distracted by her phone. Taking advantage of the situation, Hao crept up behind her, strangled her, and pushed her into the room. After she lost consciousness, he raped her.

Upon realizing that Linh had died, Hao hid her body in a kitchen cupboard. He stole her phone, motorbike key, and other belongings, locked the door, and fled.

Hoang Minh Hao during the crime scene reenactment at an apartment building in Hanoi. Photo by police

Hao sold the items he found in her motorbike’s storage compartment, including two phones and gold jewelry. He deposited VND11 million ($460) into his bank account, sold two phones and two gold rings for nearly VND30 million ($1,260), and used three credit cards to withdraw over VND68 million ($2,850). He then used the stolen money to buy two iPhones (an iPhone 14 Pro Max and an iPhone 15 Plus) and other personal items.

Finally, Hao had Linh's motorbike rewrapped from red to black and attempted to pawn it at the same shop where he had previously pawned the stolen motorbike. However, he was arrested during the transaction.

Hao confessed to his crimes, admitting that he used the stolen money to gamble online.

Linh was from the north-central province of Thanh Hoa and had moved to Hanoi to work after dropping out of high school.

She was from a poor family, had lost her mother as a child, and "always was a nice kid," her relatives said.

After a few years in Hanoi, she was managing several apartments for their owners, liaising with tenants and leasing them out.

She had returned from her hometown after the Tet holiday, and on Feb. 16 had told her family she was meeting a prospective tenant that day. Her family could not contact her through the day and even that night, so they contacted the police.