24 July 2006 :
a court in the northern province of Dien Bien handed down death sentences to three people and life imprisonment sentences to five others after they were convicted of cross-border drug trafficking.The smuggling ring of 16, led by Nguyen Thi Van, was found to have sold more than 11.6kg of heroin since the end of 2004. The drugs were smuggled from foreign countries into the north-western provinces and distributed in Ha Noi, Ha Tay, Thai Nguyen and Bac Can, and China.
Van was ordered to pay a VND100 million fine before she is executed. The other gang members were given prison terms of 18 to 20 years. All assets and money earned from their drug trading have been confiscated.
(Sources: Vietnam News, 22/07/2006)
