Quang Vinh Thuan, 29, was found guilty of theft with the judge adding that his behavior had damaged the reputation of Vietnam and its people in the eyes of foreign tourists.

Thuan worked as a hairdresser and needed money to repay debts. On January 26, while he was driving a motorbike home, he saw a man on foot at a corner of Nguyen Trai Street in District 1. He sped up to the man and grabbed a phone from his hand.

But the victim, a Chinese tourist, grabbed Thuan and dragged him off the motorbike.

Seeing the incident, passers-by rushed to apprehend Thuan and handed him over to the police.

HCMC is a popular tourist destination with 8.5 million foreigners visiting it last year, but its reputation is tarnished by the occasional street crime, especially those targeting foreign tourists.