Residents of a village in Thanh Hoa province attacked "sand poachers" with bricks and Molotov cocktails after recognizing municipal officials among the wrongdoers.

A few days ago, residents of Thieu Do commune saw 4 specialized dredging boats working at an abandoned sand quarry. Local officials, including the vice-chairman of the commune, were spotted on one of the vessels.

At that very moment, the villagers armed themselves with stones and Molotov cocktails (burning bottles of fuel). They burned down 2 watchtowers that had been previously installed by the authorities to guard the site and prevent illegal sand mining.

The next day, residents of Thieu Do commune blocked a highway, demanding that the culprits be punished. Naturally, police were called to maintain order. According to the management authorities, an investigation into the illegal sand mining is already underway.

In Vietnam, illegal sand mining is a pressing issue. When sand is extracted in unauthorized places, problems such as the erosion of agricultural fields and cemeteries can occur.

In May 2017, the country's government launched programs to combat illegal sand mining. Prior to this, 840 such cases had been recorded, fines totaling 10,000,000,000 VND had been levied, and 26 vessels had been confiscated.