Man sentenced to death for trading drugs, eyeing 50% profit

Dang Danh Tuan, 38, and Vo Thi Hang Nga, 32, had known each other for a long time.

In June 2022 Tuan bought three kilograms of various drugs for VND300 million (US$12,175) and kept them at his mother's house in Vinh, the capital of Nghe An.

Nga had in her possession 1.3 kg of drugs.

Both were waiting for the opportunity to sell them.

On Sept. 27 that year, when a customer placed an order, the two went together with over two kilograms of drugs in a car to deliver them.

But as soon as they opened the car door and stepped out, police officers who had been lying in wait caught them red-handed.

From their confessions, the police seized the remaining two kilograms from their places.

At the trial, Tuan said he had no stable job after being released from prison, and so used the money he had saved before going to jail to buy the drugs.

He had hoped each kilogram, which cost him VND100 million, would yield a profit of VND50 million.

Nga said she turned to drug trafficking due to her family's difficult circumstances.

Tuan had previously been tried five times for drug-related offenses and thefts.

Both expressed remorse, hoping for lenient sentences so they could return to make amends and take care of their young children.

However, the court determined that they were dangerous to society and warranted the highest sentences as a deterrent and preventive measure.

Vietnam has stringent drug laws, among the strictest in the world, to combat the rising incidence of drug trafficking and usage.

Those found guilty of possessing or smuggling significant quantities of drugs, such as over 600 grams of heroin or more than 2.5 kilograms of methamphetamine, face the death penalty.

But despite the harsh penalties, it remains a key smuggling and trafficking hub, particularly for drugs from the Golden Triangle.