Vietnamese student detained for killing compatriot over gambling debts

A Vietnamese student who fell into gambling after coming to South Korea to study has been detained on charges of killing a fellow Vietnamese national.

Judge Eom Ji-a of the Busan District Court issued an arrest warrant Friday against a Vietnamese man in his 20s, identified only as A, on charges of robbery and murder. Judge Eom cited a risk of flight as grounds for the warrant.

A is accused of killing a Vietnamese female student in her 20s who attended the same university in Busan and stealing her money.

At around 1:15 a.m. Wednesday, A allegedly entered the Jung-gu home of victim B, a Vietnamese woman in her 20s, threatened her with a weapon, bound her mouth and hands with tape, and took her cash. He then allegedly strangled her to death.

The two knew each other through the same university in Busan. Police arrested A at a hospital in Sasang-gu on the day of the crime.

A told investigators that he committed the crime because of gambling debts.

Police plan to verify the credibility of A's account while investigating the exact circumstances of the crime and the full extent of the damages.