On August 13, Nguyen Van Vien, Chief Procurator of the Hung Yen People’s Procuracy, confirmed that Thanh had been allowed to return home while awaiting the appellate hearing.

Previously, the Chief Judge of the Hung Yen Provincial People’s Court had petitioned the Chief Procurator to appeal the first-instance judgment in the case of “Violating regulations on the protection of endangered and rare animals.”

The petition requested the appeal of Criminal Judgment No. 35/2025/HSST, dated August 8, 2025, issued by the Regional Court No. 5 of Hung Yen, so that the provincial court could review the entire case and verdict.

Following various reports on social media, the Chief Judge of Hung Yen Provincial People’s Court coordinated with the Chief Procurator and leaders of the Provincial Police to grasp the full details of the case. They requested detailed reports from the Chief Judge of Regional Court No. 5, the Chief Procurator of the same region, as well as the presiding judge and the procurator in charge of the trial.

According to the case file, in 2022, Thanh learned from social media that the white-crested pheasant was an endangered and rare species, prohibited from breeding, keeping, or trading, and valuable in the market. He decided to breed them for sale to earn money.

In 2024, he bought one male white pheasant from an unknown seller in Can Tho for VND 4.5 million (about USD 177). Later, he traded a fire-crowned shama bird with a man in Dien Chau District, Nghe An Province for two female white pheasants, which he kept with the male bird.

Thanh did not register the birds with the authorities. The females laid 13 eggs, of which 10 hatched and 3 were spoiled.

In March 2025, he advertised the birds for sale on Facebook, writing, “For those who asked about ornamental birds before, I now have two flocks. Contact me if interested.” He also posted photos in rare bird enthusiast groups, asking, “Anyone for conservation?”

On March 26, an unidentified buyer messaged him about purchasing the 10 chicks for VND 500,000 each (USD 20). They agreed on a total price of VND 5 million (USD 197), with an extra VND 1 million (USD 39) for Thanh to keep the chicks for a few more days before delivery.

The buyer transferred a VND 2 million (USD 79) deposit to Thanh via his wife Nguyen Thi Oanh’s bank account. The remaining VND 4 million plus VND 2.6 million (USD 103) for transportation would be paid upon delivery.

On April 1, Thanh hired Thai Dinh Son from Do Luong to deliver the birds for VND 2.6 million. Due to poor eyesight and the long trip, Son subcontracted the delivery to Hoang Van Truyen for VND 2.5 million.

On April 2, at around 7:00 a.m., the vehicle carrying the chicks was stopped on DH07 Road, Quy Son Hamlet, Song An Commune, Vu Thu District, Thai Binh Province. Police seized all 10 chicks.

A search of Thanh’s home uncovered three more adult white pheasants.

The Vietnam National Museum of Nature later confirmed that the 13 birds were white pheasants (Lophura nycthemera), listed in Appendix I, Group IB of Government Decree 84/2021 on endangered species management at the time of investigation.

However, the Hung Yen People’s Procuracy argued that the August 8, 2025 verdict was inconsistent with updated laws. Under Circular No. 27/2025/TT-BNNMT, effective July 1, 2025, the species is now listed in Group IIB, not Group IB.

They recommended that the provincial court annul the first-instance verdict and return the case for reinvestigation under Article 234 of the Penal Code (“Violation of regulations on protection of wildlife”), as well as lift Thanh’s detention.

Thien Luong