Vietnam to remove death penalty for embezzlement, sparing tycoon's life

HANOI, Vietnam — Vietnam volition region the decease punishment for 8 offenses starting adjacent month, including embezzlement and activities aimed astatine overthrowing the government, parliament said Wednesday, sparing the beingness of a tycoon successful a $12 cardinal fraud case.

The National Assembly, the country’s lawmaking body, unanimously ratified the amendment to the Criminal Code earlier Wednesday to abolish the decease punishment for the crimes, it said successful a statement.

Other crimes that volition nary longer pb to the decease punishment see vandalizing authorities property, manufacturing fake medicine, jeopardizing peace, triggering invasive wars, espionage and carrying drugs, the authoritative Vietnam News Agency said.

The maximum condemnation for these crimes volition present beryllium beingness imprisonment, the study said.

Those who were sentenced to decease for these offenses earlier July 1 but person not yet been executed volition person their sentences commuted to beingness imprisonment, the study added.

These volition see existent property tycoon Truong My Lan, the chairwoman of existent property developer Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, who was sentenced to death past twelvemonth connected embezzlement charges.

Lan’s lawyers did not instantly respond to a Reuters petition for comment.

“According to the amendment of the Criminal Code, her condemnation volition automatically beryllium reduced to beingness imprisonment,” lawyer Ngo Anh Tuan, who is not portion of Lan’s defence team, told Reuters.

Ten offenses volition stay taxable to superior punishment successful Vietnam, including murder, treason, coercion and the intersexual maltreatment of children, according to the report. Drug trafficking volition besides stay a superior offense.

Capital punishment information is simply a authorities concealed successful Vietnam and it is not known however galore radical are presently connected decease enactment successful the country. Lethal injection is the lone method of execution aft firing squads were abolished successful 2011.