Russian woman, 30, faces execution for smuggling 3kg of cocaine into Vietnam

Vietnam, Drug smugglers sentenced to death in 2014

A 30-year-old Russian woman accused of being a cocaine mule faces the death penalty in Vietnam.

But Maria Dapirka, who has already written a 'farewell letter' to her mother, claims she was set up by her lover who posed as a top footballer.

Her lawyers have said she has accepted she may soon be executed, but still clings on to some hope she will be freed after three years in prison.

Dapirka, who lived in Thailand when she met her lover, known as Nick, was caught with almost 3kg of cocaine by Vietnamese customs on a flight from Singapore

She said the cocaine was planted in her luggage by Nick - or 'Chib Eze' - who apparently has a penchant for seducing attractive young women before conning them into carrying drugs.

Dapirka's verdict and sentence was due to be handed down by a Vietnamese judge today in a Ho Chi Minh city court but the session was postponed 'for further investigation' for the fifth time.

In a letter to her mother Olga, a desperate Dapirka said she was ready for any decision by the court.

She wrote: 'Don't worry about me. I am fine. I am ready for any end. 'I hope you will manage to visit me.

'I've not seen you for four years. I miss you so much! Please take good care of your health.'

Her lawyer Sunkar Nurmagambetov said: 'We have received Maria's appeal.

'She addressed her family and said that she has not lost faith yet but realistically she understands there might be scenarios like a death sentence or life term.'

Before her arrest, she was a keen sportswoman who did not drink or smoke, he said.

'She has had to get used to the new conditions. She is trying to stay as optimistic as she can, but sometimes her mood can be quite low.'

Pro-Kremlin news site Mash in Russia published a picture purporting to be 'Nick', the man she accuses of framing her after they met in Thailand.

The Nigerian media has claimed the same man used different fake names to dupe dozens of other women with model looks to act as drugs mules. His real name is not known.

'What started as a beautiful love story for these innocent girls with model looks ended up into a nightmare on the death row on drug-trafficking charges,' reported NAIJ.com two years ago.

'All these beautiful girls have been duped into being drug mules by an elusive Nigerian drug baron, who pretended to be a professional footballer or a pro from the fashion industry.

'He seduced the girls promising to marry them and establishing intimate relationships with his victims, but little did they know what they have been chosen for.'

Suspected victim Akzharkyn Turlybay, aged 20, a Kazakhstan model, was sentenced to life imprisonment in China, before the verdict was quashed last year and the case sent back to the lower courts.

Another Zhibek Sakeeva was jailed for 12 years in Indonesia in 2012 after allegedly being conned by the same drugs baron.

One more possible victim was 22-year-old Colombian, Juliana Lopez, a university student and model, who also hosted a TV show, it was reported.

Lopez was arrested two years ago in China with a notebook containing drugs.

A campaign organised by Maria Dapirka's friends calling for her release alleged that 'a whole criminal syndicate of Nigerian men work in Asia and all around the world, like Maria's so-called boyfriend.

'They make up all sort of stories, win trust, some even marry their potential future drug mules.

'Maria is not in this alone, there is plenty of girls like her who trust these men.'

Olga, her mother, insisted her daughter was innocent.

'I hope Maria will be released because Vietnam has the death penalty for this crime.'

The woman was caught with two nylon bags packed with cocaine in her hand baggage, and more wedged inside a magazine, at Ho Chi Minh City's Tan Son Nhat International Airport in August 2014.

'Maria would not carry cocaine, she has always lived a strictly healthy lifestyle,' said her brother Vadim.

'She does not eat meat, nor smoke, nor drink and has always said that she thinks all of those things are really disgusting.'

Popular tourist destination Vietnam has some of the most severe penalties for drugs offences in the world.

People caught with even small quantities of hard drugs are liable to be executed.

More than two dozen foreigners are currently facing the death penalty or life imprisonment for drug trafficking offences.

Source: Mail Online, Will Stewart, August 30, 2017

⚑ | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com.

Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE!

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde

Maldives | Death penalty law for drug trafficking now in effect

MALÉ, Maldives (DPN) — The Maldives has officially brought into force an amendment to its Narcotics Act that introduces the death penalty for large-scale drug trafficking, marking a significant and controversial shift in the island nation’s criminal justice policy. The amended law, which took effect Saturday, March 7, 2026, allows for capital punishment in cases involving the smuggling and importation of specific quantities of illicit substances. The move fulfills a key pledge by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu’s administration to crack down on the country’s growing narcotics crisis and protect what he has termed the nation’s “100 percent Islamic society.” Thresholds for Capital Punishment Under the new provisions, the death penalty is not a mandatory sentence but an available option for the judiciary when specific criteria are met. The law establishes clear weight thresholds for substances brought into the country: Cannabis: More than 350 grams. Diamorphine (Heroin): More than 250 grams....

Alabama | Gov. Ivey commutes Charles “Sonny” Burton’s death sentence

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - Gov. Kay Ivey has commuted the death sentence of Charles “Sonny” Burton, who was set to be executed Thursday. The governor’s office released the following statement: “Governor Kay Ivey on Tuesday announced that she has commuted the death sentence of Charles L. Burton to life in prison with no chance of parole. Mr. Burton was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1991 capital murder of Doug Battle in Talladega, Alabama. As required by law, the governor first reached out to a representative of Mr. Battle’s family. She also notified the attorney general. Governor Ivey’s letter to Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner John Hamm is attached.

Supreme Court Denies Alabama Appeal, Allowing New Trial in Death Row Case

The U.S. Supreme Court has cleared the way for a new trial for one of Alabama’s longest-serving people on death row after declining to review a lower court ruling that prosecutors violated his constitutional rights by intentionally rejecting Black jurors. According to an article written by the Associated Press, one of the longest-serving death row inmates in Alabama might receive a new trial after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the state’s appeal of a lower court’s ruling that prosecutors had violated his rights by intentionally rejecting Black jurors. According to the article, on Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the ruling from the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. This decision paved the way for Michael Sockwell, the 63-year-old death row inmate, to receive a new trial.

Texas executes Cedric Ricks

A Texas man was put to death Wednesday evening for fatally stabbing his girlfriend and her 8-year-old son in 2013, apologizing profusely to her older son who survived with multiple stab wounds and witnessed the execution. Cedric Ricks, 51, was pronounced dead at 6:55 p.m. CDT following a lethal dose of the sedative pentobarbital at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. He was condemned for the May 2013 killings of 30-year-old Roxann Sanchez and her son Anthony Figueroa at their apartment in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth suburb of Bedford. Sanchez’s 12-year-old son, Marcus Figueroa, was stabbed 25 times and feigned death in order to survive.

Prosecutors seek death penalty in 2 Georgia cases

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty in two separate Georgia criminal cases. One involves the killing of a Gwinnett County police officer and another is over the death of a 4-year-old girl in Hall County . Kevin Andrews is charged in the death of 25-year-old Gwinnett County Police Officer Pradeep Tamang, who was shot and killed while investigating a credit card fraud case. Authorities said Andrews had an outstanding warrant and shot at officers without warning. Another officer, David Reed, was seriously injured.

Missouri Man Said DNA Test Could Prove Innocence. He Was Executed Before a Court Ruled.

Lance Shockley died by lethal injection last year. State courts have rejected prisoners’ requests for DNA testing in recent years. Lance Shockley, a man on death row in Missouri, wanted items from the crime scene to undergo DNA testing to potentially prove his innocence. The court scheduled proceedings on his request — but the date set was for two days after his execution. Patty Prewitt can’t have her DNA tested — and fully clear her name — because her sentence was commuted and she is no longer in prison. And others, including Lamar McVay, who is serving 30 years for a robbery, can’t even get an answer from the state on his DNA testing request. He's still awaiting a ruling on a motion he filed in September 2022.

Florida | Governor DeSantis signs death warrant in 2008 murder case

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a death warrant for Michael L. King, setting an execution date of March 17, 2026, at 6 p.m. King was convicted and sentenced to death for the 2008 kidnapping, sexual battery and murder of Denise Amber Lee, a 21-year-old North Port mother. On January 17, 2008, Michael Lee King abducted 21-year-old Denise Amber Lee from her North Port home by forcing her into his green Chevrolet Camaro. He drove her around while she was bound, including to his cousin's house to borrow tools like a shovel. King took her to his home, where he sexually battered her, then placed her in the backseat of his car. Later that evening, he drove to a remote area, shot her in the face, and buried her nude body in a shallow grave. Her remains were discovered two days later. During the crime, multiple 9-1-1 calls were made, but communication breakdowns between emergency dispatch centers delayed the response. The case drew national attention and prompted w...

Texas Plans Second Execution of the Year

Cedric Ricks is set to be killed on March 11 Cedric Ricks spoke in his own defense at his 2013 murder trial, something most defendants accused of a terrible crime do not do. Ricks confessed that he had killed his girlfriend, Roxann Sanchez, and her 8-year-old son. He admitted he was aggressive and had trouble controlling his anger, stating that he was “sorry about everything.” The Tarrant County jury was unmoved. Ricks has spent the last 13 years on death row and is scheduled to be executed on March 11.

Florida executes Billy Kearse

Florida executes man who killed Fort Pierce police officer during 1991 traffic stop Moments before receiving a lethal injection, Billy Kearse asked for forgiveness from the family of Danny Parrish, whose widow said she found peace after a "long, long 35 years.” A man convicted of fatally shooting a police officer with his own service weapon during a traffic stop was executed Tuesday evening, becoming the third person put to death by Florida this year after a record 19 executions in 2025.

Chinese courts conclude trials of 2 criminal gangs from northern Myanmar, 16 sentenced to death

Chinese courts have concluded the trials of 2 major criminal groups based in northern Myanmar involved in telecom and online fraud, the Supreme People's Court (SPC) said Thursday. At a press conference held by the SPC, it was revealed that by the end of 2025, courts across the country had concluded first-instance trials of over 27,000 cases related to telecom fraud operations in northern Myanmar, with more than 41,000 returned suspects sentenced. Notably, among the trials of the so-called "4 major families" criminal gangs -- which had drawn widespread domestic and international attention -- those of the Ming and Bai groups have completed all judicial proceedings.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog