Woman allegedly kills boyfriend with cyanide, attempts to stage suicide by driving off cliff

Tran Nguyen Thu Trang, 39, was taken into custody by police in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong on Thursday on suspicion of murder.

Tran Nguyen Thu Trang at a police station. Photo courtesy of police

Trang admitted to buying cyanide through social media last month and using it to kill her lover, a 39-year-old man, due to relationship issues.

She poisoned the man with cyanide while the two drove were driving from Dong Thap in the Mekong Delta to HCMC on Oct. 20. She then transported the victim's body to an apartment in HCMC's District 7 before deciding to dispose of it in Lam Dong.

She drove to Bao Loc Pass in Lam Dong on Oct. 21, searching for a spot to execute her plan. At around noon, she drove the car off the edge of the pass "with the intent to commit suicide," she said.

A car is damaged after being plunged off a cliff in Lam Dong Province in the Central Highlands. Photo by VnExpress/Hoai Thanh

The vehicle was severely damaged, but Trang escaped with minor injuries.

Authorities were alerted to the incident, and dozens of officers and soldiers arrived at the scene to conduct a rescue. However, evidence at the site and the condition of the man's body indicated that he had died before the crash.

Following days of investigation and forensic analysis, the police determined that Trang had murdered the man.