Vietnam sentences 5 to death for drug trafficking
December 30, 2011
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HANOI, Vietnam—A court in southern Vietnam has sentenced five people to death for heroin trafficking.
State-run Tuoi Tre newspaper said Saturday that the five were convicted in Ho Chi Minh City of trafficking 7 kilograms (15 pounds) of heroin from neighboring Cambodia to Vietnam.
The newspaper said three others received life imprisonment on the same charges at the end of the three-day trial by Ho Chi Minh City People's Court on Friday.
The court also handed down jail terms ranging from seven to 20 years against six other defendants.
About 100 people are sentenced to death each year for drug-related offenses in Vietnam, where trafficking or possessing 1.3 pounds (600 grams) of heroin is punishable by death.
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