Ho Van Nong, a 19-year-old Vietnamese farmer, was sentenced...

Ho Van Nong, a 19-year-old Vietnamese farmer, was sentenced to death by firing squad by a court in the central province of Quang Tri after being convicted of raping and murdering a woman to steal her money. The murder took place on 27 February 2003 when Nong asked his neighbour Dang Thi Luan, 43, for money so he could buy some rice wine. Luan, who was on her way to the local market, refused, prompting Nong to beat her with a stick until she fainted. He then dragged his victim 50 metres away from the road and raped her, after which he strangled her and repeatedly stabbed her with a sharp stick in the eyes because they had remained open after he killed her. Nong then went back to where he had stopped Luan and hid her motorcycle in a bush, taking 100,500 dong (six dollars) from her bag. He was arrested two months later and confessed to his crime during the trial.