A man in Vietnam tried to get a $203,169 ransom from his family to pay off gambling debts after digging up his uncle’s grave. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

A man in Vietnam went to extreme lengths to try to repay his significant gambling debt. Law enforcement arrested Luu Thanh Nam after he dug up his uncle’s grave and tried holding the remains for ransom.

Nam faces extortion and desecrating grave charges, which can carry prison sentences of up to seven and 20 years, respectively. The 37-year-old was trying to get ₫5bn (US$203,169) from his own family after racking up major gambling losses.

saying she would never get the remains back if she didn’t pay the ransom

He sent an anonymous text message to his uncle’s wife, saying she would never get the remains back if she didn’t pay the ransom and warned her not to get help from the police. Family members found the damage to the grave and proceeded to alert the authorities of the ransom demand.

Police subsequently pinpointed Nam as the thief, and he confessed after questioning. The family got the remains back and reburied them. Tampering with graves is a very serious offense in Vietnam, as locals believe doing so disrupts the soul of the deceased and could also affect living family members.