A mob of several dozen people beat a man to death after catching him and another man stealing dogs in the central province of Nghe An early Wednesday morning, the Tuoi Tre newspaper reported.
The two men, whose identities have not been released, were fleeing on their motorbikes after being caught stealing dogs in Ngoc Son Commune, when they fell.
One of them then managed to escape, while the other was beaten to death by the people who were chasing them. The people also burned the bike.
The men were carrying a sack containing five dogs, according to the newspaper.
Police are investigating the case further.
In other news, a man was electrocuted to death by a group of people stealing his dogs in the southern province of Dong Nai on Tuesday, Tuoi Tre reported.
According to the family of the victim, Vo Hoang Nam was sleeping when he heard the family's two dogs barking "unusually," so he opened the door to check.
As soon as he stepped out, a man shot him in the chest with a homemade taser.
Nam collapsed, while the thieves escaped with the dogs on a bike.
The case is being investigated further.
Several cases in which mobs have beaten up and badly injured or killed people who stole dogs have been reported in northern and central provinces, including Hanoi and Nghe An.
The dogs are usually sold to dog meat restaurants.
On June 20, a 20-year-old man was beaten unconscious in Nghe An province by an angry mob of hundreds of people after being caught stealing dogs. His bike was also burned down.