Police officers read out detention orders to the four suspects. — Photo courtesy of the police

PHÚ THỌ — Four officials in the northern province of Phú Thọ have been detained over allegations of embezzling more than VNĐ1.7 billion (US$65,000) from public funds intended to support vulnerable people and ethnic students, police said.

The case centres on two institutions, a social assistance centre and a boarding school, where investigators allege routine expenses were inflated and paperwork fabricated to divert money meant for care and education.

Those arrested include the director of Phú Thọ's Social Assistance Centre, Vũ Doanh Nam, and the centre's accountant, Phùng Thị Thùy Linh, as well as the principal of Yên Lập Ethnic Boarding Secondary and High School, Trần Thu Đông and the school’s accountant, Hoàng Thị Xuân Hòa.

At the centre, which cares for people with mental illness, disabilities and elderly residents without family support, beneficiaries receive between VNĐ3.5 million and VNĐ4 million ($133-$152) monthly from the State. Police allege that in 2025, Nam instructed Linh to inflate food costs and produce false documents, pocketing more than VNĐ679 million ($25,800).

A separate strand of the investigation focuses on the boarding school, where students receive about VNĐ1.872 million ($71) per month to cover basic living and study expenses. Đông and Hòa are accused of overstating food spending and fabricating documents linked to school activities, misappropriating more than VNĐ1.03 billion ($39,100) since 2024.

Police officers search Nam and Linh’s offices.

All four were charged and placed in pre-trial detention on Wednesday on suspicion of abuse of office. Police also searched their homes and workplaces.

Nguyễn Minh Tuấn, the provincial police chief, described the alleged wrongdoing as particularly serious, noting that the funds involved were intended for people in especially vulnerable circumstances and that the case had raised public concern.

Police said the investigation is ongoing and efforts are under way to recover the money. — VNS