HO CHI MINH CITY, May 30 (Xinhua) -- A court in Vietnam on Monday handed down a life sentence to a 34-year-old Australian man for transporting nearly 3.4 kilogram of heroin, local media reported.

The Ho Chi Minh City People's Court gave the sentence to Jones Nathan Andrew James, who was arrested in the city's Tan Son Nhat airport in May 2013 when checking in for a flight to Australia with two suitcases which contained the drug.

The Australian man would have been given death penalty if he had not had restricted cognitive capability, online newspaper Phap Luat Thanh pho Ho Chi Minh (Ho Chi Minh City Law) reported.

According to Vietnamese law, those convicted of smuggling over 600 grams of heroin or more than 2.5 kilograms of methamphetamine are punishable by death. Making or trading 100 grams of heroin or 300 grams of other illegal drugs also faces death penalty.