HÒA BÌNH  – The Hà Nội High-level People’s Court has reduced the sentence given by Hòa Bình People’s Court to Đào Quang Thực for conducting “activities aimed at overthrowing the people’s administration” under Clause 1, Article 79 of the 1999 Penal Code.

At an appeal trial held on Thursday with Thực’s plea for a commuted penalty, the defendant and his lawyer presented mitigating factors to the judge. 

Considering Thực made significant achievements while working as a primary school teacher and his family contributed to the country’s revolutionary movement, the court cut the 14-year prison sentence to 13 years.  

Earlier, the Hòa Bình People’s Court sentenced Thực to 14 years in prison and five years of surveillance.

According to the indictment, Thực, born in 1960 and residing in Toàn Sơn commune of Đà Bắc district, is a former teacher at Triệu Phúc Lịch Primary School in the district. He committed many violations of the law over time and undermined solidarity in his place of work and within the local community, forcing local authorities to take action.

After that, he became discontented and conducted sabotage activities aimed at overthrowing the people’s administration. Thực used two Facebook accounts and emails to contact domestic and overseas reactionary forces. He also posted and shared many articles and comments with anti-State content.

Thực joined the ‘Chính phủ Quốc Gia Việt Nam lâm thời’ (Provisional National Government of Việt Nam) group, a reactionary organisation that aims to eradicate the leadership of the Communist Party and the State via armed riots.

He carried out many activities and wrote many articles with anti-State content to send to this organisation.

State agencies warned Thực about those activities many times, and he had pledged to stop such actions and not take part in reactionary activites.

However, Thực still continued anti-State activities and even colluded with others to plan terror attacks on senior officials of Thanh Hóa and Hòa Bình provinces, the indictment said.

Searching Thực’s house, police seized evidence relating to his anti-State activities. On July 11 last year, the Hòa Bình People’s Procuracy prosecuted him for conducting “activities aimed at overthrowing the people’s administration”.   

At the first-instance trial, the defendant admitted all of his violations. — VNS