The Ha Tinh Provincial People's Court sentenced 41-year-old Huy, a resident of Hoanh Son ward, to five years in prison on 11/9 for illegal possession and use of a military weapon, under Article 304 of the penal code.

In court, Huy explained that his obstructed view led to the pellet penetrating his neighbor's window, causing Phuc's death. He pleaded for leniency to return to his family and atone for his actions.

The jury stated that Huy's actions posed a danger to society and required strict punishment as a deterrent. As part of a voluntary agreement, Huy must compensate the victim's family 300 million VND.

According to the indictment, in May 2024, Huy found a 6.5 mm air rifle, classified as a military weapon, in a field in Cam Lac commune. He hid it at his fiancee's mother's house in Hong Hai residential group, Hoanh Son ward. He then researched how to use it online and ordered pellets to shoot birds.

Around 2 PM on 10/2, Huy took the air rifle, intending to shoot birds perched in his neighbor Phung Thanh Chuong's lemon tree. Hoang Van Hoa (Huy's future brother-in-law) advised him not to shoot, but Huy dismissed the concern. He loaded the rifle, aimed through his living room window, and fired two shots.

Defendant Huy (center) at the online trial, connected from the Ha Tinh Provincial Police Detention Center to the courtroom of the Ha Tinh Provincial People's Court, morning of 11/9. Photo: Hung Le

Authorities reported that from nearly 30 m away, a pellet passed through the lemon and custard apple trees, entering Chuong's open bedroom window. It struck 29-year-old Phung Van Phuc (Chuong's son) in the left side of his chest, piercing his heart as he sat working near the window. Phuc collapsed and died from acute blood loss.

Panicked, Huy hid the rifle under a bed at an acquaintance's house in Hoanh Son ward and fled. Around 8 PM that evening, after a phone call from his wife, Huy surrendered to the Ha Tinh Provincial Police and confessed.

Duc Hung