A Vietnamese woman living in Angola was burnt alive by local robbers early this month, while her Vietnamese boyfriend and an Angolan friend also fell victim to the brutality.

Hoang Thi Van, 29, hailing from the north-central Vietnamese province of Ha Tinh, along with two other victims, was torched by the murderers on the night of December 1, according to the Embassy of Vietnam in Angola.

Van succumbed to her serious wounds on December 7 while her Angolan friend had already passed away three days after being hospitalized. Her boyfriend, Nguyen Van Vinh, was in a critical condition.

Hoang Minh, Van’s father living in Vietnam, stated that she followed her elder siblings to Angola to earn a living when she was 21 years old.

In 2011, the woman returned to her hometown to give birth to her daughter, Minh said, adding that Van later came back to Angola to continue her job while he raised the little girl.

According to Van’s relatives in Angola, the three people were attacked and tied up by a gang of robbers at her house at around 2:00 am on December 1.    

As they did not have any valuables, the robbers poured gasoline onto the victims and set them on fire before leaving the place.

The three were then brought to the hospital with severe burns.

During a brief interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, Nguyen Phan Giang, counselor at the Vietnamese Embassy in Angola, said that the tragedy had been notified to the Vietnamese community in the African nation.  

Van’s family members have also been briefed on the necessary procedures regarding her repatriation, Giang continued.

The Vietnamese people living in Angola have been seeking for financial support to help the family retrieve Van’s body.

Local authorities have been urged to carry out an investigation.