Man gets death penalty for massacre in HCM City

HCM CITY — HCM City’s People’s Court has sentenced Nguyễn Hữu Tình, 18, to death on charges of murdering five members of a family in their home.

At the hearing, HCM City’s People’s Procuracy said that the defendant’s act of murdering five family members, including three children, was particularly serious.

The procuracy asked the trial panel to sentence the defendant to death for murder and eight years in jail for theft of the family’s assets. The final penalty for the defendant was a death sentence.

The procuracy also asked the defendant to pay the family nearly VNĐ 200 million (US$8,690).

According to the indictment, Tình was hired to work as a metal worker at a factory owned by the deceased family in 2017 in HCM City’s Bình Tân District. The murder occurred on February 12 and was a result of a conflict between him and the family.

The victims include the house owner Mai Xuân Chính, 46, his wife Mai Thị Hồng, 37, and their three children Mai Xuân Triều, 13, Mai Huyền Diệu, 11, and Mai Huyền Diệp, 6.

They were found dead several days later at different locations inside the house, with slash and stab wounds caused by a sharp weapon.

After killing the family, Tình stole some items from their house and fled.

He was later found hiding at a friend’s house in southern Long An Province. — VNS