The Hanoi People’s Court sentenced Zhang Jian, 19, Wang Xua Lei, 24, and Wang Tong Tang, 27, to 10 years in jail each for robbery and death for murder.
On August 8 last year, the three hired taxi driver Nguyen Hung Manh to take them to Hanoi from the northern border province of Lang Son.
On the way, the three made plans to kill Manh, steal his cash and car, and go on to Laos and Myanmar. When Manh stopped the taxi at Hanoi’s Tang Bat Ho Street and asked for his fare, they choked and incapacitated him and put him in the back seat.
Using the phone’s translation function, they told Manh they only needed the money and did not wish to kill him. When Manh resisted, he was stabbed several times before being choked to death.
The culprits then took the car and dumped Manh’s body into a Red River section running through Ba Vi District as they proceeded towards the northern province of Son La.
When the car reached Phu Yen District in Son La, it stalled. The three men then walked and rented a ferry to get to Moc Chau District. They were caught by Son La police on August 9.
Manh’s body was found by locals four days later in Hanoi’s Long Bien District.