HÀ NỘI — The Superior People’s Court, an appellate jurisdiction in Hà Nội, on June 26 maintained the charges and upheld the sentences against Đinh La Thăng and five of his accomplices in the case involving the State-owned oil group PetroVietnam (PVN)’s contribution of VNĐ800 billion to the private-owned Oceanbank.

Accordingly, Thăng, former chairman of PVN, will serve 18 years in prison for “deliberately violating State regulations on economic management, causing severe consequences” as announced by the Hà Nội People’s Court in March 2018.

Together with a jail sentence of 13 years handed down by the Superior People’s Court in Hà Nội on May 14, 2018 for his involvement in the case of “asset embezzlement” and “deliberately violating State regulations on economic management, causing severe consequences” at PetroVietnam Construction JSC (PVC), Thăng got a total of 30 years in jail.

The charges and sentences were also maintained for Nguyễn Xuân Sơn, former Deputy General Director of PVN, Vũ Khánh Trường and Nguyễn Xuân Thắng, both former members of the PVN Member Council.

In the first-instance trial, Sơn, Trường and Thắng had received prison sentences of 30 months, five years and 22 months, respectively, for “deliberately violating State regulations on economic management, causing severe consequences.”

The penalty of non-custodial re-education for 20 months against Nguyễn Thanh Liêm, also former PVN board member, was upheld.

Ninh Văn Quỳnh, former chief accountant and former head of the department of finance, accounting and auditing of PVN, will spend 23 years behind bars for “deliberately violating State regulations on economic management, causing severe consequences” and “abusing position and power to appropriate property” as decided by the first-instance court.

Only Phan Đình Đức, former board member of PVN, had his charge reduced to “lacking responsibility causing serious consequences” and was issued a warning instead of 15-month non-custodial re-education for “deliberately violating State regulations on economic management, causing severe consequences” given by the first instance court.

Đức will also be exempted from civil obligations. Apart from jail sentences, the court asked Đinh La Thăng, Ninh Văn Quỳnh and Vũ Khánh Trường to pay compensation of VNĐ600 billion, VNĐ100 billion and VNĐ40 billion, respectively.

Nguyễn Xuân Sơn, Nguyễn Xuân Thắng and Nguyễn Thanh Liêm, are ordered to repay VNĐ15 billion each.

In 2008, after failing to establish Hồng Việt Commercial Joint Stock Bank, PetroVietnam decided to invest in Oceanbank.

From 2008 to 2011, Đinh La Thăng instructed and decided on PetroVietnam’s investment in Oceanbank to become a shareholder of the bank.

Under his instruction, Vũ Khánh Trường, Nguyễn Thanh Liêm, Nguyễn Xuân Thắng, Phan Đình Đức, Nguyễn Xuân Sơn, and Ninh Văn Quỳnh carried out three contributions of the group’s capital totaling VNĐ800 billion to Oceanbank.

Due to Oceanbank’s weak capacity and violations committed by Hà Văn Thắm, former Chairman of Oceanbank, the bank incurred serious losses, leading to the loss of the whole VNĐ800 billion invested by PetroVietnam when the State Bank of Vietnam was forced to buy Oceanbank at zero đồng. — VNS