Some of the 227 defendants attend the opening hearing of the VN10 drug trafficking case at the HCM City People’s Court on Monday, while others join the proceedings via video link from Chí Hòa Detention Centre. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — A court in HCM City on Monday opened the trial of 227 defendants charged in connection with a sprawling cross-border drug trafficking case involving transactions worth nearly VNĐ29 trillion (US$1.1 billion), following an investigation that expanded into hundreds of related cases.

The first-instance trial at the HCM City People’s Court is scheduled to run until September 12.

Proceedings are being held publicly in person and via video link, with the main courtroom at the court’s headquarters and a satellite courtroom at Chí Hòa Detention Centre, also known as T30.

Of the 227 defendants, 214 are in detention, nine are out on bail, and four fugitives are being tried in absentia. The case has 130 defence lawyers and 18 people with related rights and obligations, according to court documents. 

The case was expanded from a March 2023 incident in which customs officers at HCM City's Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport found drugs hidden in toothpaste tubes carried in the luggage of four Vietnam Airlines flight attendants arriving from France.

Of 327 toothpaste tubes seized, 157 contained 2.97 kg of ketamine and 8.31 kg of MDMA, according to the case file.

The discovery prompted HCM City police to launch the VN10 investigation and trace a wider network allegedly involved in bringing drugs from France into Viet Nam.

The four flight attendants (Trần Thị Thu Ngân, Đặng Phương Vân, Võ Tú Quỳnh and Nguyễn Thanh Thủy) had agreed to carry 60 kg of goods from France to Việt Nam for Hà Danh Nậm, receiving €6.5 per kg, according to the indictment.

Investigators found no evidence that they knew the goods contained drugs or that they had communicated or transferred money with Nậm, Hoàng Sỹ Thắng or other members of the alleged network. The four were therefore not prosecuted.

Investigators allege that Nậm organised seven shipments of synthetic drugs from France to Việt Nam, including the shipment intercepted at Tân Sơn Nhất. Drugs were allegedly concealed in toothpaste tubes and dietary-supplement boxes and sent through air transport and international express delivery.

The shipments were allegedly received by Thắng in Đồng Nai Province, who separated the packages and instructed others to deliver them to distribution points in HCM City and Bình Dương (now part of HCM City).

The investigation subsequently expanded into 20 related cases and identified nearly 500 branches and sub-branches of the alleged network.

Authorities said the wider investigation involved more than 2,700 suspects prosecuted in 477 related cases.

The defendants face charges including illegal transportation, trading and possession of narcotics, organising illegal drug use, using forged documents, failing to report crimes, concealing crimes and illegally retaining property.

Those convicted of the most serious drug-trafficking offences can face life imprisonment or the death penalty, while illegal transportation of narcotics carries penalties of up to life imprisonment under Việt Nam’s current Criminal Code. Sentences vary depending on the offence, the quantity of drugs involved and other aggravating circumstances.

Among those on trial are singer Nguyễn Trung Hiếu, known as Chi Dân, and Spanish model Andrea Aybar Carmona, known as An Tây. They are accused of offences related to organising illegal drug use, with Aybar also facing a drug possession charge.

The four fugitives being tried in absentia include Hà Danh Nậm, 52, whom prosecutors identify as an alleged key figure in the network.

The court began the trial under tight security and is expected to continue proceedings until September 12. — VNS

Defendants at Chí Hòa Detention Centre (T30), under the HCM City Police, attend the trial via video link. — VNA/VNS Photo