Vietnamese cop shoots man dead over family affair

Police in Dong Nai Province have detained a traffic cop for fatally shooting a man over a family feud.

Nguyen Tan Phuoc, a 40-year-old sublieutenant, is said to have accidently fired the weapon while he was beating Bui Viet Hai, 30, at a house in Bien Hoa Town not far from Saigon on Saturday.

The police said Phuoc’s girlfriend opposed a relationship between Hai and her 19-year-old daughter, but had been unable to make them break up.

Phuoc took matters into his own hands after hearing a heated argument between his girlfriend and Hai on the phone.

He gave himself up on Sunday.

Police are investigating where he obtained the gun, which was not standard issue for an officer of Phuoc’s rank.

Phuoc had previously worked as a driver for a senior police chief in the province, prompting suspicion that he had taken the gun from the retired officer.