On 18/6, Bui Tien Luc was sentenced by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court to a total of 19 years in prison for the crimes of trafficking human body parts; forging seals and documents of agencies and organizations; and using fake seals and documents of agencies and organizations.
In connection with the case, the five remaining defendants received sentences ranging from six months to 15 years and six months for one or more of the aforementioned crimes. Tran Thanh Hoa, another individual involved, passed away, leading the investigative agency to suspend his defendant status.
According to the trial panel, the defendants' actions were extremely dangerous, infringing upon the right to life and health, and thus required strict punishment. However, the trial panel acknowledged several mitigating circumstances for the defendants, leading to a partial reduction in their sentences.
Forensic results revealed that most defendants in the case suffered a 45% body injury rate due to having one kidney removed.
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Defendant Bui Tien Luc (seated at the front of the second row) and other defendants in court. Photo: Hai Duyen |
Before the court deliberated, Bui Tien Luc expressed remorse during his self-defense and final statement, acknowledging his wrongdoing during his temporary detention.
Luc stated that he and many defendants in the case faced difficult circumstances, which led them to sell their kidneys. While awaiting kidney sales to fund their elderly parents' care, he met many people in similar situations and offered them accommodation at his home.
"Some people, even after selling their kidneys, did not dare to return home. All the defendants had their own private struggles," Luc said.
He also mentioned that his family encountered numerous difficulties after his legal troubles began. His daughter, who had been accepted into university, had to drop out to work and help support the family.
Luc requested the trial panel to consider a reduced sentence so he could return to work and care for his family sooner. He also asked the court to consider leniency for the other defendants.
The other defendants also requested reduced sentences, citing their families' extremely difficult circumstances.
The verdict established that Luc met Hoa in 2018 when both were awaiting kidney sales. After successfully selling his kidney the following year, Luc became familiar with the process of testing, examination, and completing transplant documents. He then transitioned to brokering kidney sales for others to profit.
Hoa was tasked with finding kidney sellers, connecting them with recipients, and accompanying both parties for tests, receiving 20 million VND for each successful case. From 2019 to 2022, many individuals who had previously sold kidneys through Luc continued to join the ring.
To legalize transplant documents, Luc and his accomplices were accused of forging birth certificates, marriage registration certificates, local government confirmations, and voluntary kidney donation forms. These fake documents were used to portray sellers as blood relatives or kin of the recipients.
Luc also purchased fake seals and blank birth certificate forms online, then forged signatures and applied the seals to complete the documents. Ho Hieu, whom Luc had allowed to stay at his home while awaiting his own kidney sale, was accused of participating in drafting these documents.
The defendants in the ring used dozens of fake documents to legalize kidney transplant cases. Luc was accused of directly using five fake seals to create 21 fake documents; Hoa produced 51 fake documents; Ho Hieu participated in making eight documents; and Nguyen Thanh Phong used 15 fake documents for three kidney trafficking cases.
According to the case file, from November 2019 to October 2023, the ring carried out 28 kidney trafficking cases, with 15 successful transplants. Each recipient paid between 370 million and 1,1 billion VND. After deducting related costs, the defendants profited from 10 million to 500 million VND per case.
Investigative agencies determined that Luc was the ringleader, directly orchestrating 15 kidney trafficking cases, including 12 successful transplants.
Hai Duyen
