Woman paid friend to cut off her hand and foot in failed insurance scam

A Vietnamese woman paid a friend to cut off her hand and foot in a failed bid to claim an insurance payout. The woman, identified only as L T N, told police she had been struck by a train as she walked along the tracks and was rescued by her friend, D.

The 30-year-old submitted a claim to her insurance company for 3.5bn dong (£112,000, $157,000). In Vietnam the average annual income is £1,600 ($2,100). “N hired D to cut her hand and foot, then continued to have him report false information to the police,” said Bac Tu Liem police chief Nguyen Thanh Tung.



L T N checked into a hospital in Hanoi in May with a third of her left foot and a third of her left hand severed. Doctors told her they could not reattach the limbs. Hanoi police declined to comment the case, but reports said the woman offered her friend about $2,000 to perform the deed.

“The greatest shame is that N, instead of claiming the money, has suffered a huge loss by losing both her hand and foot,” Tung said. The woman is still being treated for the wounds. Police have said they they will not be investigating further and no action will be taken against her. “Her case sends a warning that people should not attempt insurance fraud at the expense of their own health,” said Tung, adding it was the first case of the kind he had seen in Vietnam.