Anti-drug police in central Nghe An Province have uncovered a 30-member ring that had traded drugs in a prison in Tam Ky District for about ten months. Most members of the ring were serving their sentences in Prison No. 3 managed by the Ministry of Public Security. Most have two or three previous convictions for murder, drug trafficking and rape, said Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Trung Truc, at the provincial anti-drug police department. The ring’s leader was Le Xuan Minh, 43, of Nghe An’s Thanh Chuong District, who has been serving a drug-related sentence and has four previous convictions. The ring led by Minh was discovered after he was caught storing a bag containing 6.25 grams of heroin in his cell on May 21. On searching his cell, the police then found and seized four mobile phones in which he stored many phone numbers of his outside contacts that serve his ring’s drug activities. The police expanded their inspection and seized another bag of 9.25 grams of heroin from another prisoner. The ring was exposed then and Minh, after days of being questioned, confessed that he was operating a ring that received drugs from outside the prison and then sold them to prisoners at prices that were four times higher than street value. “There are many ways to bring drugs in from outside. The drugs could be hidden in gifts to prisoners from their relatives, or packed in condoms and then put into the anuses of prisoners’ visitors, or thrown into the prison’s premises by drug traders from outside, to name a few, “ Minh told investigators. The drugs were later secretly sold to prisoners when the ring’s members met them during working time under their previous agreement on prices and mode of payment. The ring had used 12 bank accounts for drug-related payment that were controlled by Le Quoc Hung, another prisoner. Hung and Minh had had their acquaintances open these accounts for them. From May 2011 to March 2012, the ring had stored and then sold nearly 259 grams of heroin in the prison, according to the provincial police’s conclusion. The police have referred the case file to the provincial People’s Procuracy for prosecuting 30 members of the ring for “illegally trading in drugs”. Prison No. 3 currently has about 2,000 prisoners, of whom 1,500 are former drug addicts.
More
Vietnamese billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong commits $1 billion more to VinFast
He will spend VND10 trillion (US$394 million) from his pocket building charging stations in the next three years
Highlights
New cave with stunning stalactites found in Vietnam’s Quang Binh
The cave is two kilometers long
Photos
Artist paints murals on house to raise awareness of COVID-19 prevention in Hanoi
He drew the virus, vaccine, and earth on the exterior walls of a house
Latest news
New cave with stunning stalactites found in Vietnam’s Quang Binh
The cave is two kilometers long
Central Committee of Communist Party of Vietnam agrees to resignation of top lawmaker Vuong Dinh Hue
The 13th Party Central Committee convened a meeting in Hanoi on Friday to discuss and give opinions on relieving Hue of all his political roles and ending his public service
Colombia's Chiribiquete park to receive $1 million annually for at least 30 years
Colombia's parks agency, the Frankfurt Zoological Society and German fund Legacy Landscapes on Thursday launched a financial mechanism to fund Chiribiquete National Park with $1 million each year for at least 30 years
Rest stops unavailable along 100km-long expressway in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta
Apart from the absence of rest stops, the Trung Luong-My Thuan Expressway currently has just two lanes and no emergency shoulder
'Extreme' climate blamed for world's worst wine harvest in 62 years
Australia and Italy suffered the worst
Over 100 Vietnamese cargo vehicles have been kept in China since early 2023
The situation was attributed to contract disputes and drivers’ failure to preserve goods
Foreign visitors amazed by night stay in northern Vietnam ethnic village
In the central living area of a traditional Mong ethnic house in Lao Xa Village, Sung La Commune, located in Dong Van District of Ha Giang Province, northern Vietnam, over a dozen guests congregated around hot dinner trays prepared by a millennial local man and his wife.
Netherlands tops EU investors in Ho Chi Minh City: vice-chairman
The support from the government and Dutch investors is making practical contributions to Ho Chi Minh City
Glamping sites encroach on Ho Chi Minh City rivers, canals
Glamping has become a new tourism trend among the young
A closer look at BYD Seal ahead of entry into Vietnam
The car might be available in Vietnam in both hybrid and electric versions