Vietnam deports U.S. citizen early after plot trial
Source: Reuters
HANOI, Nov 13 (Reuters) - A Vietnamese-born U.S. citizen who was convicted last week on charges of plotting against Vietnam's government was deported from the country on Monday, officials said, days before an Asia-Pacific summit in Hanoi. They said Nguyen Thuong Cuc, 58, whose 14-month detention drew attention in the United States ahead of this week's visit by U.S. President George W. Bush, had her sentence reduced. Cuc, who goes by the name of Thuong Nguyen Foshee in her Orlando, Florida home, has close ties with Bush's Republican Party in her state. "I can confirm that Mrs Foshee has left Vietnam," said a spokeswoman at the U.S. Consulate-General in Ho Chi Minh City. On Friday, a Ho Chi Minh City People's Court sentenced Cuc and two other Vietnamese-born U.S. citizens to 15 months imprisonment, including time served, and ordered them to be expelled within 10 days of finishing their prison terms. The court issued two directives on Saturday to reduce the remaining jail term for Cuc to 29 days and also to deport her, the state-run Sai Gon Giai Phong newspaper reported on Monday. A total of seven people were charged in early November with "terrorist activities", including bomb plots, delivering leaflets and jamming radio stations, prosecutors said. It was not immediately clear if the sentences of the other two U.S. citizens would be reduced. If not, they would expect to be deported in December. Prosecutors linked the seven to a Vietnamese-born U.S. resident, Nguyen Huu Chanh, who has been suspected in recent years of plotting to bomb Vietnamese embassies. He is detained in South Korea while Hanoi pursues his extradition. Chanh is a member of a U.S.-based group called "Government of Free Vietnam". Vietnam hosts the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit from Nov. 12-19 and visitors will include presidents and prime ministers from APEC's 21 members. Separately, Bush and the leaders of China, Japan, Russia and Chile are scheduled to make state visits as part of the biggest international event held in the under-developed Southeast Asian country. (Additional reporting by Ho Binh Minh)
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