Shots fired as police fight traffickers, seize 200 kg of meth

By Thu Ha July 23, 2020 | 12:47 am PT

A police officer questions Vu Ba Tenh (L) and a Laos man in Dak Lak Province, July 20, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Thu Ha.

Police in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak fired four shots while chasing down two traffickers smuggling 200 kg of methaphamine this week.

Police in Dak Lak on Thursday said Vu Ba Tenh and a Laotian are under criminal investigation for transporting 200 kg of meth, considered the biggest ever haul in the Central Highlands.

On Monday, police stopped the suspiciously acting men driving a car along Ho Chi Minh Road towards Dak Lak Province for a check.

As officers opened the trunk, the duo tried to escape. Police then fired four warning shots and chased the culprits into a coffee field four kilometers away. The duo were arrested eventually.

Police officers put packs of meth on a scale, July 20 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Thu Ha.

Police weigh a meth haul seized in Dak Lak Province on July 20, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Thu Ha.

At the police station, the Laotian admitted on July 18 he was hired by a compatriot to wait near Savannakhet border gate between Vietnam and Laos and transport the drugs to Ho Chi Minh City for $20,000.

Vietnam is a key trafficking hub for narcotics from the Golden Triangle, an intersection of China, Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar and the world's second largest drug producing area behind the Golden Crescent in South Asia.

The repeated seizure of large amounts of narcotics has occurred despite Vietnam having some of the world’s toughest drug laws.

Those convicted of possessing or smuggling more than 600 grams of heroin or cocaine or over 2.5 kg of methamphetamine; and those found guilty of production or sale of 100 grams of heroin or 300 grams of any other illegal substance can be sentenced to death.