18 March 2003 :

That a Vietnamese man who raped and murdered a 48-year-old woman was sentenced to death, Agence France-Presse reported. A court in the northern port city of Hai Phong had found Duong Hong Thanh, 46, guilty of the crime against his neighbour in November 2002. After raping the victim, Hoang stabbed her to death to ensure her silence but he was arrested by police a few days later.