Teacher executed by firing squad for child rape in central Vietnam

A teacher convicted of raping 6 elementary school students has been executed by firing squad, a court official in Vietnam's central highlands said Friday.

Nguyen Van Phu, 37, was sentenced to death in 1999 for raping 6 of his students, aged 8 and 9, over 5 days in 1997. He sexually molested another 6 students, the official said on condition of anonymity.

Phu was executed on May 22, the official said. Phu, a teacher in Daklak province, 220 miles north of Ho Chi Minh City, was arrested after parents reported him to the police.

More and more cases of child rape and sexual abuse have been reported in Vietnam's state-controlled press in recent years. Rape of a child under 13 is punishable by death in Vietnam.