A court in the southern province of Binh Duong has sentenced a Vietnamese worker to three years in prison for disturbing public order and intentionally damaging property.

Le Van Nghiem, 23, was among hundreds who incited workers to destroy properties of foreign-invested companies in Binh Duong on May 13.

The rage was sparked by ongoing territorial tension in the East Sea after China deployed its oil rig Haiyang Shiyou - 981 and ships in Vietnam ’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone in early May and has yet to remove them.

Nghiem joined a crowd of protesters in front of the Chan Viet company on that evening. They later broke down its entrance gate, inciting others to scream and chase Chinese workers away, according to the court’s indictment on May 25.

At about 8 pm when a police car arrived, Nghiem mistook it for a Chinese vehicle and smashed a part of its bodywork, causing over 4 million VND (190 USD) of damage.

He was seized right away at the scene.

The same day, the court also handed down a one-year jail sentence to Chau Vinh Tuong, 18, for looting in the riot.

Taking advantage of the chaos, he broke into an office of Cao Vien company and stole a computer screen and other equipment worth more than 5 million VND (230 USD).-VNA