Vietnamese duo get death penalty for hosting drug parties in psychiatric hospital
A man who threw drug-fuelled raves at a psychiatric hospital in Vietnam has been sentenced to death.
Nguyen Xuan Quy, 39, had managed to host multiple such parties at the hospital in Hanoi before being caught by authorities last year, VnExpress reported on Wednesday (Aug 31).
He and his accomplice Nguyen Van Ngoc were sentenced to death by the Hanoi People’s Court on Wednesday (Aug 31) for storing, facilitating, using and selling narcotics.
Quy was first admitted to the hospital in the capital city of Hanoi in 2018, where he befriended staff to gain special privileges not afforded to other patients.
By 2020, he was able to convert his room into a full-on party venue — complete with soundproofing, strobe lights, turntables, as well as large amounts of methamphetamine and ketamine.
According to Tuoi Tre News’ report of his arrest in April 2021, Quy was also selling drugs from the hospital’s infirmary, with buyers posing as patients’ family or caretakers.
To facilitate his business operations, he recruited fellow patients who were struggling with addiction to both sell and buy drugs with him.
Quy’s accomplices would also disguise themselves as taxi drivers to handle deliveries and act as lookouts.
All in all, Quay and his accomplices were found to have been storing some 15 kilogrammes of drugs at the hospital.
VnExpress added that eight others involved in the drug ring, including nurses and technicians, received prison sentences ranging from three to seven years.
This included Do Thi Luu, a former department head from the hospital, who was said to have received VND10 million (RM1,911) from Quy each month.
Although Luu was sentenced three years in prison for abuse of power, she denied her involvement in the affair.
Luu said she felt that Quy’s room renovations were “appropiate” and so did not report the matter to her superiors.
She added that as a doctor, she was only responsible for her “expertise” and not for monitoring her patients’ acquaintances.
By Priya Kulasagaran – Malay Mail – September 2, 2022