Major Drug Trafficking Case Uncovered in Hanoi
A significant drug trafficking operation has been dismantled in Hanoi, with a local man and his five accomplices receiving lengthy prison sentences for their involvement in the illegal production and sale of drug-laced tobacco and e-cigarettes. The case highlights the growing threat of synthetic drugs and their increasing presence in the market.
Le Anh Tho, 30, was sentenced to 20 years for “illegal trading of narcotic substances” and an additional 12 years for “smuggling.” However, Vietnamese law limits total jail terms to 30 years, which means he will serve a maximum of 30 years. Phung Bao Ngoc, 30, received a sentence of 28 years for the same offenses. The court found that Tho and Ngoc operated two processing labs and employed four henchmen to inject more than 2.7 kg of drugs and drug-infused oil into tens of thousands of herbal cigarettes and e-cigarettes.
The other four members of the gang were also convicted of similar charges. Do Duy Lung, 31, and Hoang Van Quy, 32, each received 18 years, while Le Anh Duc, 31, was given 16 years and Phung Quoc Viet, 24, received 15 years.
The Operation and Its Methods
According to the indictment, the operation began in August 2022 when Tho and Ngoc used social media to smuggle disposable e-cigarettes from China into Vietnam. They paid over VND500 million (approximately US$19,120) for 100,000 sticks but struggled to sell them because they did not meet the preferences of Vietnamese users.
Recognizing a gap in the market, Tho decided to inject drugs into the unsold stock. He purchased drug-infused oil and 1.1 kg of drugs in powder form, along with equipment and materials from China. He mixed the drugs with oil and sprayed it onto tobacco to create herbal cigarettes branded as Dominix and Amsterdam. Additionally, he combined the drug-infused oil with flavored oil and injected it into e-cigarette shells, producing products called Ampire Chill.
Quy used a machine to load fibers into the tobacco Tho had purchased, while Lung, Duc, and Viet packed the products and awaited Tho’s orders to ship them to customers. Although the defendants claimed they could not recall the exact number of products made, they stated that everything was sold out.
Expansion and Arrest
In March 2023, Tho purchased another 60 liters of oil and three liters of drug-infused oil along with e-cigarette shells from China, paying in bitcoin. This move indicated an escalation in their operations.
The gang was arrested in September 2024 while manufacturing 7,500 drug-laced e-cigarettes at a warehouse in Hanoi. They had already produced over 3,000 and were preparing to ship them. Police seized nearly 800 grams of the drug MDMB-4en-PINACA, a new oil-based synthetic drug often dissolved into solutions or infused into cigarettes, pipe tobacco, or dried herbs for consumption.
This substance has gained popularity in restaurants, bars, karaoke parlors, and at birthday parties, according to the Hanoi police. Prosecutors emphasized that this case involved a particularly serious transnational drug-trafficking operation, involving new types of drugs and directly targeting young users.
Between May 2023 and their arrest in September of that year, the gang trafficked nearly 2.7 kg of MDMB-4en-PINACA and smuggled in 100,000 e-cigarettes valued at VND9 billion.
Ongoing Investigations
A man known only as Dat, who is believed to have smuggled the e-cigarettes into Vietnam for Tho, remains at large. The police have issued a warrant for his arrest and are actively searching for him. This case underscores the need for increased vigilance and stricter regulations to combat the growing use of synthetic drugs and the illegal trade of e-cigarettes and related products.