Britons face firing squad in Vietnam heroin trial
HANOI - Two Britons went on trial in Vietnam yesterday, accused of involvement in one of the country's biggest heroin trafficking cases. If found guilty, they could face death by firing squad.
Le Manh Luong, 46, and Tran Thi Hien, 47, both from London and of Vietnamese origin, were among eight defendants accused of trafficking more than 300kg (661 lbs) of heroin through Vietnam, the court heard in the town of Dong Hoi in central Vietnam.
According to early reports from the courthouse on the first day of the trial, Ms Hien, a restaurant owner and mother from south London, initially denied the charges but finally admitted to being a member of the drug-trafficking ring. She broke down after repeated interrogation by members of a five-judge panel and the two uniformed prosecutors who sat beside them, according to the Times.
The Foreign Office said consular officials were attending the trial and "providing the appropriate assistance". A spokesman said Britain would remind Vietnam of its objections to the death penalty in the event of a capital sentence.
The Britons were arrested along with six Vietnamese in June 2004, when police seized 70kg of heroin allegedly hidden in their two lorries. Prosecutors said the defendants were part of an international ring accused by police of trafficking a total of 339kg of heroin from Laos to Hong Kong and China via Vietnam.
The trial, which was broadcast live on local television, will last nine days. In Vietnam, possessing, trading or trafficking 600 grams of heroin or 20kg of opium is punishable by death or life in prison.
According to reports, Ms Hien's daughters and sisters were in court to watch proceedings, and were horrified by the charges and conditions under which she has been held. Her lawyer had only four days to prepare her case after her original lawyer was prevented from attending the trial by police officers who reportedly incarcerated her in her home.
"I'm 100% sure she's not involved," said Ms Hien's 24-year old daughter, Tina Tran, who flew to Vietnam to see her mother, with her sister Jenny. Her family say she was there on holiday, visiting relatives and her mother's grave.
"She's been here two years and they haven't told us a single thing about what's going on, and she's not allowed visitors. We don't know who to talk to, and they won't tell us anything here," she told the Times.
Ms Hien is a former refugee from Vietnam who escaped to Hong Kong in the early 1980s. But the Vietnamese prosecutors accuse her of making payments, of as much as $200,000 (£105,000), for four separate deliveries containing a total of 120kg of heroin which were concealed in trucks containing motorbike parts.
By Fred Attewill - The Guardian - November 22, 2006.
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