At the People’s Court of Long Biên District in Hà Nội on Tuesday. — Photo dantri.com.vn

HÀ NỘI — The People’s Court of Long Biên District in Hà Nội on Tuesday afternoon sentenced Trương Văn Minh, a 16-year-old boy accused of beating an 8th-grade student into a brain-dead state, which ultimately resulted in his death, to four years and nine months in prison.

The case has attracted widespread media attention over the cruelty of the people involved.

Minh, residing in Việt Hưng Commune in Long Biên District, was tried for the charge of deliberately causing injury. The victim was Nguyễn Hoàng Đạt, a 14-year-old student at Việt Hưng Secondary School in Long Biên.

Minh was also ordered to compensate the victim’s family more than VNĐ1 billion (US$39,315). However, since he was under 18 and did not have his own assets, his father Trương Văn Tâm is responsible for paying the compensation.

According to the trial panel, Minh committed the crime while still a minor, had a good background, and was a well-behaved student. The defendant’s family has proactively paid part of the compensation to address the consequences.

The victim's lawyer did not agree with the defendant's charge and requested the court to return the case file for further investigation.

According to the lawyer, the defendant's father Tâm was an accomplice who aided in the offence. During the investigation, authorities have not held Tâm accountable, which the lawyer argued shows signs of overlooking a crime.

The lawyer stated that the damages related to treatment, burial costs and mental distress amounted to over VNĐ1.2 billion.

Nguyễn Thị Lan, the victim’s mother, submitted a compensation claim for this amount to the Long Biên District People’s Court, along with a detailed expense list and supporting documents.

In his final statement, Minh acknowledged his wrongdoing and asked the court to reduce his criminal responsibility.

The trial panel determined that Minh’s testimony matched the evidence, documents in the case file and statements from other relevant individuals. Minh did not intend to take the victim’s life, so the charge of “deliberately causing injury” was appropriate, the panel found.

The court acknowledged that Tâm was indeed present at the scene, but his involvement was interrupted and he was not there when Minh assaulted Đạt. Tâm had also intervened and taken the victim to the hospital for emergency treatment.

As for Khang, Minh’s 11-year-old brother, the court found that he was too young to bear criminal responsibility at the time of the incident.

The trial panel concluded that Minh alone punched Đạt, causing a brain haemorrhage that led to the victim’s brain death.

According to the indictment, at around 4pm on March 13, 2024, Khang was playing in the yard at the Lệ Mật communal house when a conflict happened between Khang and the victim, and Khang got slapped in the face.

Khang ran to call his older brother, Minh, to resolve the dispute.

The two brothers ran into their father, who then took his sons on a motorbike to the communal houseyard to settle the matter.

Upon arriving at the yard, the father instructed his sons to meet their grandfather, who was present there.

While turning his motorbike around to leave, he saw his older son run up and punch the victim, causing him to fall to the ground.

The father intervened and took his sons home. Later, he returned to the yard and noticed Đạt showing signs of shock and paleness. He then took Đạt to the hospital for emergency treatment, and Đạt was later transferred to Military Hospital 108 in Hà Nội for further care.

The hospital diagnosed Đạt with a brain concussion. He died after two months in a coma.

The autopsy results showed that the cause of the victim’s death was multi-organ failure resulting from a brain haemorrhage. — VNS