On the morning of 23/8, 26-year-old Hai, a resident of Phu Yen ward, was sentenced to three years in prison by the District 11 People’s Court (former Phu Yen province) for extortion, according to Article 170 of the penal code.
According to the indictment, Hai borrowed money from several people and was unable to repay them. He repeatedly asked his mother for money but she refused.
On the afternoon of 31/7/2020, Hai asked a man named Long to call his mother and threaten her, saying he had been kidnapped. They demanded she transfer money to Hai's account "to pay off debts to Long and others, otherwise they would take Hai to Hai Phong".
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Le Thanh Hai at the trial today. Photo: Cao Toan |
Le Thanh Hai at the trial today. Photo: Cao Toan
Hai rented a hotel room in Tuy Hoa and, along with Long, continued calling and texting his mother with threats, demanding she transfer 200 million VND.
Frightened, Hai's mother reported the incident to the police. After three days, Hai returned home and was brought in for questioning, where he confessed to the entire scheme.
In 2023, Hai was sentenced to 9 months probation by the former Binh Thanh District People’s Court in TP HCM for gambling. More recently, in May, he was detained by TP HCM police for investigation in another case also related to gambling.
At the trial, Hai wept and asked his mother for forgiveness, pleading with the judges for leniency. The man named Long, who helped Hai carry out the extortion, could not be prosecuted as the authorities couldn’t identify or locate him.
Bui Toan
