Three Nigerian men and a Vietnamese woman are on trial for transnational drug trafficking at a court in Ho Chi Minh City.

 

According to the indictment, ringleader Ben Blessed, 31, hired several Vietnam women to smuggle 693 grams of heroin from foreign countries into Vietnam, from where the drug would be sent to neighboring countries like China.

 

The ring was busted on July 21, 2009 when the Ministry of Public Security’s drug crime investigation department caught Pham Thi Thanh Trang, 33, carrying four packets of heroin hidden in a pair of sandals and a notebook at a hotel in Binh Tan District.

 

Trang told police that the sandals and the notebook belonged to her boyfriend, 31-year-old Ozogu John, and was given to her by Blessed.

 

Also that day police found another pair of sandals containing heroin at the house of Anyanwu Chima Stanley, 33, who was also hired by Blessed.

 

The HCMC People’s Court started the trial Thursday and a verdict is expected to be delivered Wednesday.

 

Vietnam has some of the world’s toughest drug laws. Those convicted of smuggling more than 600 grams of heroin are eligible for the death sentence.