Police seize traditional medicinal herbs smuggled in from China during a raid at a site in HCM City's District 5 on December 11. — Photo thanhnien .vn

HCM CITY — The HCM City police have carried out inspections of herbal medicine stores as part of a campaign to combat trafficking of Chinese traditional medicines into the country.

In the evening of December 11 officers along with officials from other agencies found tonnes of medicines without invoices or certificates of origin.

They were smuggled over the Chinese border and to the south by a trafficking ring headed by Lâm Đình Hưng and Lâm Đình Hoài, brothers and residents of Hà Nội’s Gia Lâm District, and Trần Văn Quang, a resident of the northern Province of Bắc Ninh.

The three have established a number of trading companies licensed to trade farm produce.

Dũ Hưng Traditional Medicine Store on Hải Thượng Lãn Ông Street in HCM City’s District 5 is one of their major outlets.

On the same day authorities also searched 10 traditional medicine pharmacies in HCM City and Nam Định and Nghệ An provinces and found over five tonnes of contraband stuff.

During their raid of Dũ Hưng Traditional Medicine Store, they seized over 100 tonnes of medicines trafficked by Hưng and Hoài, the police said.

According to the police, every day the gang imports three to five containers of farm produce, each with a dozen tonnes of goods, with traditional medicines concealed inside.

Over 10 tonnes of traditional medicinal herbs are transported into Việt Nam in this manner every day.

Prosecution

On December 4 the police co-ordinated with relevant agencies to raid a site near the Chi Ma Border Gate in Lạng Sơn Province and found Trần Văn Quang, a customs officer, and Nguyễn Văn Khanh, a driver, smuggling medicinal herbs into Việt Nam with a customs declaration form for dried flowers and fruits.

On December 9 authorities in Bắc Ninh and Hà Nội raided six traditional pharmaceutical shops in Ninh Hiệp Commune in the capital’s Gia Lâm District and in Long Vỹ Hamlet in Bắc Ninh Province’s Từ Sơn township and found over 10 tonnes of traditional medicinal herbs.

On December 10 the police commenced criminal proceedings in the trafficking cases in Lạng Sơn, Bắc Ninh, Hà Nội, and other localities. — VNS.