Family of Deceased Student Notified for Investigation
Following the fatal traffic accident involving a 14-year-old girl, family members of N.N.B.T. (born 2010, residing in Vĩnh Long) confirmed to Dân trí on May 1st that they have been contacted by the Supreme People’s Procuracy Investigation Agency in Ho Chi Minh City for an interview. The family will be processed according to the relevant procedures.
“On April 29th, my lawyer brought me to the Citizen’s Complaint Desk of the Supreme People’s Procuracy Investigation Agency to submit documents and records related to the accident. Yesterday, an investigator called me and said they would contact us following the holiday,” said T.’s aunt.
Scene of the fatal accident involving the 14-year-old girl. (Photo: CTV)
Vĩnh Long Police Respond to Allegations
Vĩnh Long Province Police stated that Colonel Nguyễn Hoàng Văn, the former chief of Trà Ôn District Police, submitted a report to the provincial police leadership concerning the September 4, 2024, accident in Vĩnh Xuân commune.
Social media circulated allegations that the former chief directed traffic police to move a truck, altering the scene to favor the truck driver and blame the girl. Colonel Nguyễn Hoàng Văn denied these accusations, asserting no such instructions were given and that he had no relationship with the truck driver or their family.
On April 29th, a task force from the Ministry of Public Security visited Vĩnh Long Province Police to investigate the accident.
Investigation and Initial Findings
Early investigations indicate that on April 28th, in La Ghì hamlet, Vĩnh Xuân commune, Trà Ôn district, Nguyễn Vĩnh Phúc (born 1983) allegedly shot N.V.B.T. (born 1992). The initial cause appears to stem from a conflict arising from a traffic incident on September 4, 2024, where Phúc’s daughter collided with a truck driven by N.V.B.T., resulting in the girl’s death.
Conflicting Official Accounts
Accident reports indicate that on September 4, 2024, Mr. T., the truck driver, was traveling on Provincial Road 901 in Vĩnh Xuân commune. Approaching Vĩnh Lợi hamlet, with a pickup truck parked on the roadside, he activated his turn signal to overtake it. Simultaneously, two young girls were riding bicycles near the other side of the road. One girl stopped; the other, struck the first girl’s bicycle. The truck driver’s vehicle hit the second girl causing her death.
Trà Ôn District Police initially attributed the accident to the girl’s failure to check for traffic conditions while operating her bicycle. The investigating agency determined that the truck driver had veered into the opposing lane.
However, the district’s legal bodies (Procuracy and Court) held the truck driver responsible for the accident, citing improper overtaking and the girl’s lack of due care. The differing views led to inter-agency consultation with the province.
Subsequently, the Vĩnh Long Provincial Police Department, the Procuracy, and the Traffic Police Department conducted a thorough on-site investigation of the accident scene, reviewing documents and evidence. Based on the on-site examination and documentation from Trà Ôn District Police, the authorities determined the primary cause of the accident was the girl’s failure to maintain a safe following distance and lack of awareness of surrounding traffic, leading to a collision with the other bicycle. The truck, unable to react quickly, struck the girl, causing fatal injuries.
