Vice Chairman of the Vĩnh Phúc provincial People’s Committee Nguyễn Văn Khước. VNA/VNS Photo  VNA

 HÀ NỘI – The police have officially started legal proceedings against Vice Chairman of the Vĩnh Phúc provincial People’s Committee Nguyễn Văn Khước and five others for their suspected involvement in the case at the Phúc Son Group JSC, Spokesman of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) Lt. Gen. Tô Ân Xô said on April 23.

He noted that the MPS’s investigation police agency is probing into the case of “violating the regulations on accounting that causes serious consequences, taking bribes, violating the regulations on bidding that causes serious consequences, and abusing influence on persons holding positions and power to seek illegal profit” at the Phúc Sơn Group JSC, the Thăng Long Trade and Real Estate Investment JSC, the central province of Quảng Ngãi, the northern province of Vĩnh Phúc, and related units and agencies.

During the investigation, the police found that while Thăng Long company was implementing the Vinh Tường wholesale market and urban area project in Vĩnh Phúc, Nguyễn Văn Hậu, who is Chairman of the company and also Chairman of the Phúc Sơn Group JSC, repeatedly met, gave money to, and asked some officials to create conditions for his company to gain favourable land use prices.

While performing their duties, Nguyễn Văn Khước (Vice Chairman of the Vĩnh Phúc People’s Committee and Chairman of the province’s land price appraisal council), Chu Quốc Hải (former Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment), and Hoàng Văn Nhiệm (Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Finance) received money from Hậu to order Đinh Thị Thu Hương (head of the division for compensation and resettlement land prices at the land management sub-department of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment, and member of the team of assistants to the land price appraisal council), through Cao Đại Nghĩa (deputy head of the price division at the Department of Land Resources Planning and Development under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment) and Nguyễn Ngọc Huy (Director of the Nam Hà price appraisal company), to advise on and appraise land prices in favour of Thăng Long, causing a loss of VNĐ200.9 billion (nearly US47.9 million at the current exchange rate) to the State.

Basing on these investigation results, the police on April 20 and 23 prosecuted and arrested Khước, Hải, and Nhiệm on the charge of “taking bribes” under Clause 4 of Article 354 of the Penal Code, and Nghĩa on the charge of “abusing position and power while performing duties” under Clause 3 of Article 356 of the Penal Code. Meanwhile, Hương and Huy were investigated and banned from leaving their living places under Clause 3 of Article 356 of the Penal Code.

On March 27, the MPS’s investigation police agency also prosecuted and temporarily detained Lê Viết Chữ (former Vice Chairman and former Chairman of the Quảng Ngãi provincial People’s Committee, and former Secretary of the provincial Party Committee) and Phạm Hoàng Anh (Standing Vice Secretary of the Vĩnh Phúc provincial Party Committee and former Director of the provincial Department of Construction) both for the charge of “taking bribes” from Hậu to assist his companies to carry out projects in the provinces.

Regarding the case at the Phúc Sơn Group JSC, the police have prosecuted 15 suspects, including former Secretary of the Vĩnh Phúc Party Committee Hoàng Thị Thùy Lan, Chairman of the Vĩnh Phúc People’s Committee Lê Duy Thanh, Chairman of the Quảng Ngãi People’s Committee Đặng Văn Minh, and former Chairman of the Quảng Ngãi People’s Committee Cao Khoa.

Investigation in the case, which involves many localities, were initiated on February 26. VNS