What is "Lô đề" in Vietnam? What are some judgments on the act of playing "Lô đề" in Vietnam?

1.What is "Lô đề" in Vietnam?

Playing "Lô đề" is a form of betting based on predicting the results of the daily traditional lottery. In simple terms, playing "Lô đề" can be understood as a form of illegal gambling for money.

When engaging in "Lô đề" gambling, if the act constitutes a crime, the offender will be prosecuted for the crime of gambling as stipulated in Article 321 of the Ciminal Code of Vietnam 2015 (amended and supplemented in 2017) as follows:

1. Anyone who illegally gambles in any form, winning or losing money or valuable items valued from VND 5,000,000 to less than VND 50,000,000 or less than VND 5,000,000 but has been administratively sanctioned for this act or the acts specified in Article 322 of this Code or has been convicted of this crime or the crime specified in Article 322 of this Code, without having their criminal records expunged, will be subject to a fine ranging from VND 20,000,000 to VND 100,000,000, community sentence for up to 03 years, or imprisonment from 06 months to 03 years.

2. Committing the crime in one of the following cases, the offender will be subject to imprisonment from 03 years to 07 years:

a) In a professional manner;

b) Using money or valuable items for gambling worth VND 50,000,000 or more;

c) Using the internet, computer networks, telecommunication networks, or electronic means to commit the crime;

d) Dangerous recidivism.

3. The offender may also be subject to a fine ranging from VND 10,000,000 to VND 50,000,000.

2. What are some judgments on the act of playing "Lô đề" in Vietnam?

Judgment No. 177/2023/HS-PT dated September 07, 2023, regarding the crime of gambling

+ Trial level: Appellate

+ Adjudicating body: People’s Court of Quang Nam Province

+ Summary: At 16:40 hours on August 06, 2021, the Police of Ward D conducted an administrative check at the house of defendant L in Block B, Ward D, district-level town D, caught L red-handed aggregating and transferring lottery numbers and bets. At the scene, they temporarily seized: 03 mobile phones of Nokia 1172 brand with sim numbers 090xxx (number 01), 09349xxx (number 02), 0777xxx (number 03); 03 school notebooks for recording lottery numbers, bets, and calculating money; 04 sheets of betting slips; a stack of small papers; a ballpoint pen; and VND 9,410,000 in cash. The first instance court sentenced defendant Ha Thi Y to the crime of “Gambling;” and Ngo Thi Kieu L to the crimes of “Organizing gambling” and “Gambling.”

Judgment No. 55/2023/HS-ST dated June 07, 2023, regarding the crime of gambling

+ Trial level: First-instance

+ Adjudicating body: People’s Court of Dong Hoi City, Quang Binh Province

+ Summary: At around 17:15 hours on November 27, 2022, the police force of Dong Hoi City carried out a patrol and control plan to combat gambling crimes in Dong Hoi City and detected Hoang Thi L and Tran Y showing signs of gambling by betting on lottery numbers. They summoned them for investigation and clarification.

The investigation determined that:

Hoang Thi L used an OPPO A5 mobile phone registered with the Zalo account “H,” carrying the phone number 036823xxxx to receive betting messages according to the central lottery results from Nguyen L, Nguyen Thi H, Pham Thi L, Pham Thi H, Tran Thi Minh H, and recorded numbers from 06 walk-in customers, then aggregated the bets into a betting sheet, used the mobile phone to take a picture of the betting sheet, and sent it via the Zalo app to Nguyen Thi C and Nguyen S. The People’s Procuracy of Dong Hoi City, Quang Binh Province prosecuted the defendants: Nguyen S, Pham Thi Hong L, Bui Thi Tuyet L, Nguyen Thi C, and Hoang Thi L for the crime of “Gambling” according to clause 1 of Article 321 of the Ciminal Code of Vietnam 2015 (amended and supplemented in 2017).

Judgment No. 92/2023/HS-ST dated June 07, 2023, regarding the crime of gambling

+ Trial level: First-instance

+ Adjudicating body: People’s Court of Nam Tu Liem District, Hanoi City

+ Summary: At around 18:00 hours on January 08, 2023, the task force of Nam Tu Liem District Police performed their duty in the P street area of X ward, N district, Hanoi City and caught Nguyen Thi H red-handed in the act of buying and selling lottery numbers with Do Van D (born in 1984; residing in B Commune, T District, P Province) and Duong Trung D (born in 1979; residing in P Commune, Q District, Hanoi City). They made a record of the caught offense, seized the evidence, and brought all parties to the police station for clarification. The evidence seized: From Nguyen Thi H: 01 Thang Long cigarette pack used for recording sold lottery numbers on January 08, 2023; 01 iPhone 6S Plus, gold color, with sim number 0867.xxxxxx; VND 2,500,000 in cash; From Duong Trung D: 01 slip recording purchased lottery numbers from Nguyen Thi H on January 08, 2023; From Phan Van L: 01 iPhone XS, white color; From Ngo Van C: 01 Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime, black color. The People’s Procuracy of Nam Tu Liem District prosecuted Nguyen Thi H for the crime of “Gambling” according to clause 1 of Article 321 of the Ciminal Code of Vietnam 2015 (amended and supplemented in 2017).

Judgment No. 08/2023/HS-ST dated April 27, 2023, regarding the crime of gambling

+ Trial level: First-instance

+ Adjudicating body: People’s Court of Ngan Son District, Bac Kan Province

+ Summary: At 18:00 hours on August 29, 2022, at the “Ba M” pho restaurant in A Hamlet, B Commune, Ngan Son District, Bac Kan Province, the task force of Ngan Son District Police caught red-handed Dam Thi H, born in 1987, residing in A Hamlet, B Commune, Ngan Son District, Bac Kan Province, selling illegal lottery numbers to Duong Quoc D, born in 1984, residing in A Hamlet, B Commune, Ngan Son District, Bac Kan Province. Evidence seized included: 01 yellow note with recorded numbers and VND 120,000 in the left palm of H, VND 2,300,000 in the left pocket of H’s pants, and 02 mobile phones of H.

Duong Quoc D confessed: At around 17:45 hours on August 29, 2022, D met H at the “Ba M” pho restaurant to buy lottery numbers 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 06, 16, 26, 36, 46, 56, 66, 76, 86, 96, each number for VND 5,000, totaling VND 100,000. H agreed, and D gave H VND 120,000 including VND 100,000 for the lottery numbers and VND 20,000 D owed H previously. H recorded the sold lottery numbers on a yellow paper, signed it, and took a photo with the mobile phone. As H was about to hand over the note to D, the police arrived for inspection, and seized all evidence. The People’s Procuracy of Ngan Son District, Bac Kan Province prosecuted the defendants for the crime of "Gambling."

Respectfully!

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