Ba Cụt was publicly guillotined at 5:40 am on 13 July 1956, in a cemetery in Cần Thơ. A crowd numbering in the hundreds, including members of Diệm's National Assembly, Minh, regional officials and both domestic and overseas journalists witnessed the beheading. Anderson believed the use of the guillotine, instead of a firing squad, as was normal for military executions, was used to emphasise that Ba Cụt's actions were being portrayed as common crimes rather than as political opposition. Chapman said that the dual military and civilian trial indicated that Diệm viewed any opposition activities as not only politically unacceptable but also as crimes related to bad character.