Hanoi policemen jailed for stealing guns
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Hanoi People’s Court on Friday sentenced two police officers to a combined 17 years imprisonment for stealing and selling state-owned guns.
Le Manh Thang, former sub-lieutenant of Phu Thuong Ward Police Office, and Do Huu Tam, former officer of Giap Bat Ward Police Office, got 9 and 8 years respectively.
Thang and Tam, both 25, were charged with “illegally appropriating, trading and storing military weapons.”
Sixteen others involved in the trading of the weapons were sentenced between 13 months to 7 years in jail.
The Hanoi police on July 7, 2009 were informed that 11 guns, 78 bullets and five tear gas canisters were missing from the Phu Thuong Ward Police Office.
After three months’ investigation, police arrested a man who was keeping one of the guns. Based on his testimony, they busted the ring that was storing and trading the weapons.
The police found out Thang and Tam were kingpins of the ring.
Thang had used a drilling device to break the gun-keeping box while he was on duty in his office, stealing the weapons, according to the police.
He then asked Tam to keep the weapons before managing to sell them.
They sold 10 guns for a total VND88 million (US$4,500). Tam brought the remaining gun with him but then lost it.
Thang and Tam have been dismissed. Several other police officers were disciplined after the incident.
