In June 2005, Cao Han married Ngo Vinh Binh through an arranged introduction. Both had been divorced previously; Han had two daughters, and Binh had one son from prior marriages.

After moving in together, they frequently argued and even physically fought due to conflicts. When Han discovered Binh's infidelity, she lost hope in the marriage and filed for divorce, but Binh refused. He threatened to kill her if she left him.

On 31/8/2007, Han and Binh finalized their divorce at the Civil Affairs Bureau in Dai Ye City, Hubei Province. They agreed that their shared home, valued at 80,000 yuan, would go to Han, who, in turn, would pay Binh 40,000 yuan. All other household assets would belong to Han. After signing the documents, Han gave Binh the cash.

That evening, Binh called Han, asking her to return home to receive some items directly. Han wanted to reschedule, but Binh insisted on meeting immediately, so she reluctantly accepted.

As she approached the house, Han bought two bottles of water from a nearby convenience store. The store owner warned her not to go back, saying Binh would kill her. Han replied, "It probably won't come to that. I've already given him the money." She believed Binh only wanted money, unaware that he desired not only her life and money but also the house and all her assets.

Body found in an abandoned mine

Around 22h, Han arrived home. A violent argument erupted with Binh as he packed his belongings. Binh struck his ex-wife's head with a wrench, strangled her, and then stabbed her multiple times. Afterward, he used his motorbike to transport Han's body and dumped it in an abandoned mine shaft in the mountains. The following morning, Binh went to his mother's house, confessed to killing Han, and then fled.

Binh worked as a motorbike taxi driver, and his vehicle typically made a very loud noise when starting. According to neighbors, before the murder, Binh parked his motorbike in front of the house and started the engine. Due to the excessive noise, neighbors did not hear Han's cries for help.

The next day, colleagues noticed Han was absent from work and went to check on her. Finding the door closed, they did not enter. That afternoon, Han's relatives came looking for her. They pushed open the door and found the house in disarray, with water and blood splattered on the floor, along with a gold earring. They immediately alerted the police.

The house where the murder occurred. Photo: Dayuan

Police discovered numerous bloodstains in the room but did not open a case immediately because Han's whereabouts were unknown, and her fate was uncertain.

The abandoned mine where the body was discarded was difficult to locate. After disposing of the body, Binh also threw a blanket into a nearby river. Her family initially believed Han's body was in the river and hired boats to search for many days, but found nothing. They also searched the mountains for half a month in despair.

On 9/11/2007, two children chasing a bird into the mine shaft saw human legs at a turn. They were so frightened they had nightmares that night. After learning of this, their parents entered the mine to check and discovered a severely decomposed female body. DNA testing confirmed the victim was Han.

Forensic examination revealed Han had multiple injuries to her head, neck, and other parts of her body.

Premonition before the murder

Hieu Dinh, Han's eldest daughter, had moved to Wuhan City, Hubei Province, for work after her mother married Binh and rarely returned home.

Two months before the murder, Han unexpectedly took her youngest daughter, 13-year-old Hieu Tu, to stay with her older sister in Wuhan, giving her only a plastic bag containing two sets of clothes and 50 yuan, 25 yuan of which was for a train ticket.

"At that time, I thought my mother didn't need me anymore, so I was very angry. If I had known Ngo Vinh Binh wanted to harm my mother, I certainly wouldn't have left," Tu said.

For the first two months, Tu still received money from her mother, until the two sisters heard the news that their mother was gone.

After Han's death, her family went to the housing bureau to retrieve the house ownership certificate and discovered the house was already registered to Binh. Han had purchased the land before marriage and paid for the house construction after marriage; Binh had only contributed some labor.

During the divorce proceedings, Binh demanded one-half of the house, equivalent to 40,000 yuan, claiming it was marital property. Having used all her savings to build the house, Han had to scramble to borrow money to pay Binh.

However, six months before the divorce, Binh had secretly transferred the house ownership to his name. He obtained a single status certificate, changed Han's name on the house ownership certificate to that of his deceased ex-wife, and added his son's name.

While cleaning out Han's belongings, her mother found a handwritten will in her clothes. It stated, "If I suddenly pass away one day, one-half of this house will belong to my two daughters." The will was written six months before the murder. It was then that the family realized Han had anticipated the danger, written the will in advance, and urgently sent her youngest daughter to stay with her eldest.

Subsequently, the two daughters spent over two years legally reclaiming the house.

Dispute over the verdict

Binh was arrested on 19/8/2024, 17 years after the murder. Binh stated that he disposed of the body after killing Han because he felt the house was his, and Han should not die there as it would bring bad luck.

On 12/12/2025, the Huangshi City Intermediate People's Court publicly tried the case.

On 12/2/2026, Binh was sentenced to death for intentional homicide, but with a two-year reprieve, on the grounds that the crime stemmed from marital conflict.

The Huangshi People's Procuratorate considered the sentence too lenient and appealed to the Hubei Provincial High People's Court. The appellate trial took place on the morning of 10/6, and the verdict has not yet been announced.

Victim Cao Han's daughter gives an interview outside the court. Photo: Ziniu News

Vuong Van Quang, the lawyer representing the victim's family, stated, "This case is not truly related to marriage, because they had finalized their divorce on the day of the incident, and Cao Han was completely blameless."

According to lawyer Vuong, at the second trial, Binh no longer falsely claimed that Han committed suicide, as he had in the first trial. He admitted guilt but still tried to reduce his sentence by asserting that the motive for the crime was minor prior conflicts between the two. The lawyer argued that Binh's reasoning was illogical: "Killing someone over a minor issue after divorce is not logical. We believe his motive was murder for greed. He had illegally transferred Cao Han's property into his name before committing the crime."

Lawyer Vuong affirmed that Binh committed intentional homicide with cruel methods, causing serious consequences, and having a severe nature and significant social impact, thus meriting a death sentence.

After the appellate trial, sisters Dinh and Tu did not feel relieved; instead, they felt more anxious.

Dinh stated that Binh pleaded guilty to murder in the second trial, but she believed the defendant did so only to save his life, not out of genuine remorse. He had never shown remorse or apologized to the victim and her family.

Han's two daughters declared they would not accept any compensation, hoping only that the court would bring justice to them and their tragically deceased mother.

For many years, Dinh and Tu have lived in sorrow: "We did nothing wrong, yet we have had to endure all these things that we should not have. Ngo Vinh Binh pushed us into an abyss, and we will never be free of it in this lifetime."

Tue Anh (according to Yangtze Evening Post, Ziniu News, ifeng)