Killing a friend after drinking at a rented room, Hoang Van Phuc received 20 years in prison

According to the indictment announced in court on January 3, Phuc and LVC (born in 1996, residing in Thanh An commune, Dien Bien district, Dien Bien province) knew each other because they both worked as porters in Nam Sach district. Dinh Thi Hoa (born in 1979, residing in Dong Cuong commune, Van Yen, Yen Bai) lived with Phuc as husband and wife without registering their marriage.

At about 7:00 p.m. on June 25, 2024, Phuc was in a rented room in An Lam commune (now An Phu commune, Nam Sach) when Mr. C. called and invited him to drink alcohol. The two sat drinking in the rented room, and at about 9:00 p.m., Ms. Hoa came home from work and had an argument with Phuc.

Phuc stood up, took a kitchen knife and walked towards Ms. Hoa. Mr. C. saw that and said, "You can't hit your wife." Ms. Hoa ran to the neighbor's house and closed the door, but Phuc chased after her and pulled the door open. Ms. Hoa followed Phuc to the yard, and Mr. C. held a knife and said to Phuc, "You can't hit your wife. Do you want to die?". Ms. Hoa then snatched the knife from Mr. C.'s hand.

Phuc ran back to his rented room, grabbed a sharp knife, went to the alley entrance and stabbed Mr. C. once in the stomach, then pulled the knife out. Mr. C. ran away, but Phuc chased after him and stabbed him twice more in the shoulder and back, causing Mr. C. to collapse. Mr. C. was taken to the Nam Sach District Medical Center and the Provincial General Hospital by local people for emergency treatment. At around 3:00 a.m. on June 26, 2024, Mr. C. died.