On August 8, the People’s Court of Saigon sentenced defendant Nguyen Thi Thanh Xuan (61 years old, residing in Tan Binh district) to 14 years in prison for “theft of property” and 2 years in prison for “gambling”, a total of 16 years in prison. The case involved the theft of money and property at Ky Vien pagoda, ward 3, district 3.
Nguyen Thi Thanh Xuan worked as a volunteer at Ky Vien Pagoda, where Mr. LNQ was the abbot. While working at the pagoda, Xuan had the idea of stealing property to pay off debts and gambling because she owed many people money and needed money to bet on lottery tickets.
Specifically, from May 2023 to the end of July 2023, Xuan repeatedly broke into the abbot’s private room and opened the safe to take away a lot of cash. On the afternoon of July 31, 2023, the abbot discovered that his assets were missing, including: VND 1.05 billion in cash, USD 15,000, 4 ACB Bank savings books worth VND 5 billion, 2 Sacombank savings books worth VND 250 million and 1 9999 gold bar. Immediately afterwards, he went to District 3 Police to report.
The District 3 Police have transferred the case to the Ho Chi Minh City Police Department for handling according to their authority. Through the investigation, Ms. Xuan stated that because she had worked as a volunteer at Ky Vien Pagoda for many years, she knew the abbot’s living habits and where his assets were kept. Therefore, Xuan stole money to pay off her debts and gambled with Ms. Giang Nga, Ms. Mai and Mr. Tu.
The total amount of money Xuan stole during the above period was 1.05 billion VND and 15,000 USD. This money was used by Xuan to pay off debts and gamble.
In addition to Nguyen Thi Thanh Xuan, three other defendants were tried in connection with this case. Defendant Giang Nga (56 years old, residing in District 3) was sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison; Dang Thi Kim Mai (63 years old, residing in District 10) was sentenced to 2 years and 5 months in prison; and Cao Van Tu (53 years old, residing in District 3) was sentenced to 3 years in prison. All three defendants were tried for the crimes of “loan sharking in civil transactions” and “gambling”.
This case highlights the complexity and dangers of criminal activities involving property theft and gambling. The authorities have worked diligently to investigate and prosecute the defendants, ensuring justice and security in the community.