Australian arrested on drug charges in Vietnam

Hanoi - An Australian citizen of Vietnamese descent has been arrested at Ho Chi Minh City airport with more than one kilogram of heroin and could face the death penalty, a policeman said Monday. The man identified as Tony Manh, 40, was arrested as he was aboard to board a plane to Sydney on Saturday night, according to Phan Quoc Thai, a Vietnamese airport policeman. 'We found 1.1 kilograms of heroin in his pants,' Thai said. According to local Tuoi Tre newspaper, Manh is being investigated for suspected involvement in a international drug trafficking ring that has operated for many years. The ring uses Vietnam as a transit point to transport the drug to third countries by air. Under Vietnam's draconian drug laws, trafficking in more than 600 grams of heroin is punishable by death. So far this year, the country has given death sentences to at least 15 drug traffickers. Vietnam has been fighting its status as a major drugs transshipment point from the Golden Triangle of heroin production around the borders of Laos, Burma and Thailand as well as from Cambodia, a major marijuana producer According to Vietnamese police, 15,384 people were arrested for drug trafficking in 2006. Authorities seized 244.7 kilograms of heroin, 117.4 kilograms of opium, 608 kilograms of marijuana and 36,000 methamphetamine pills. © 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

And Also

Look Back at the Worst Celebrity Breakups

Look Back at the Worst Celebrity Breakups - PopEater
LG eXpo comes with optional pico projector - The Tech Herald
Yogi Bear Gets A Ranger Smith - Cinema Blend
About to Pop: Fallbrooke - PopEater
A&E series 'Hoarders' and 'Intervention' premiere Monday, Nov. 30th, preview

Your Talkback on this Story

Latest Headlines in Asia-Pacific

Older Talkback

page: 1

SoSorryMar 6th, 2007 - 01:40:58

What 'Draconian' laws? Sounds fair to me. Transport large amounts of heroin, get the death penalty. Good for VN.

Report this comment

BinhMar 6th, 2007 - 08:01:19

I do think like you. The same laws has Singapour and nobody critisize them.

Report this comment

page: 1

Asia-Pacific

Asia-Pacific News

Australian arrested on drug charges in Vietnam

And Also

Your Talkback on this Story

Similar articles

Latest Headlines in Asia-Pacific

Older Talkback

From Sites we Like

In Monsters and Critics

Corporate

The Fine Print