HCMC neighborhood terrorized by mysterious iron pellets

On Tuesday, a car parked at a café in front of Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy’s house on Lam Son Street in Tan Binh District was hit by several bullets, breaking the glass in the back of the vehicle. Several small iron pellets were found on the back seat of the car after breaking through the glass window.

Thuy said the phenomenon has been happening for the past few days. The bullets have even penetrated the reinforced glass on the ground floor and fourth floor of the house. She had to use tape to cover entire windows to prevent the glass from cracking further. Over the past week, over 100 iron pellets have been retrieved after being blasted on the premises.

A car is damaged after being hit by mysterious iron marbles at a neighborhood in HCMC's Tan Binh District. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Thuy

Around 5 m from the site, Pham Son’s house has also been frequently bombarded by such bullets, which have damaged his pipes and windows, costing him over VND20 million ($810.37) in repairs. Son said the mysterious pellets began appearing in early February, but their presence has been more pronounced in recent days.

"Whenever I hear the sounds of iron marbles hitting the roof, my neighbors and I have to bring the kids indoors to prevent them from getting hurt," Son said.

Truong Thi Hong, the head of the neighborhood, said around 20 families have been affected by the bullets. As these pellets travel at great speed, people have been unable to identify where they were shot from. The neighborhood has requested the help of police, but so far there has been no result.

Several iron pellets of unknown origin are retrieved by people from a HCMC neighborhood in Tan Binh District, March 5, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Dinh Van

Locals said someone living in a high-rise building might have been using tools to shoot the bullets, either for hunting birds or for pure entertainment.

Vo Thi Phi Yen, deputy chairwoman of the People’s Committee of Ward 2, said local authorities have begun to analyze camera footage, but have not been able to determine where the pellets came from. People have been stationed in the area to investigate the matter, she added.

This was not the first time iron pellets have terrorized a HCMC neighborhood. Back in June 2021, a house in District 1’s Tan Dinh Ward had its glass broken due to iron bullets. Authorities found that a man living nearby used a slingshot to shoot the pellets from his balcony as a form of entertainment.