Nguyen Ngoc Loan

Major General Nguyễn Ngọc Loan was a South Vietnamese general and chief of the National Police. He gained international attention when he executed a Viet Cong prisoner during the Tet Offensive. Loan was born in Huế and studied pharmacy before joining the Vietnamese National Army. He received pilot training and served with the Air Force before his appointment as the director of the National Police. Loan was known for his staunch nationalism and refusal to give Americans special treatment. His actions during the war and his subsequent life in the United States, where he ran a restaurant, have been subjects of controversy and debate.