The People's Court of Hanoi opened a first-instance trial and sentenced Cao Xuan Manh, a major transnational tiger trafficker from Nghe An, to 7 years in prison under the second punishment bracket of Article 244 of the Penal Code 2015 (amended in 2017). Manh's two accomplices, Nguyen Van Ba and Nguyen Van Cung, were sentenced to 5 and 4 years in prison, respectively. On January 12, 2024, Manh and two accomplices were caught by the Hanoi Economic Police Department while attempting to illegally trade a 4.1 kg rhino horn. While his accomplices were arrested, Manh managed to escape and flee to another country, only to return to Vietnam and surrender to the police on July 9, 2024. Manh's trafficking operations in Nghe An primarily focused on tigers, using sophisticated methods to supply everything from whole tigers to processed tiger bone for traditional medicine. "ENV applauds Hanoi People's Procuracy and court authorities for upholding the law and setting a great example for Nghe An and other provinces to follow in their efforts to combat illegal wildlife trafficking," says Ms. Bui Thi Ha, Vice Director of Education for Nature - Vietnam (ENV). "An appropriate prison sentence for notorious wildlife traffickers like Manh is the only way to deter future crime and eliminate wildlife trafficking networks," continued Ms. Ha.