(From left to right) Trần Văn Minh, Văn Hữu Chiến and Phan Văn Anh Vũ. —  Photo congan.com.vn

HÀ NỘI — The Hà Nội-based High-level People’s Court will open an appeal trial on May 4 in a case of acquiring State-owned land illegally in the central city that involved two former top leaders of Đà Nẵng and real estate mogul Phan Văn Anh Vũ.
The first-instance trial was held from January 2-13 this year. Of the 21 defendants in the case, 20 filed appeals.
Trần Văn Minh, chairman of the city’s People’s Committee for the 2006 –11 term, appealed against his combined sentence of 17 years on charges of breaching regulations on managing and using State assets that caused losses and wastefulness, and violations of land management regulations. Minh said he was only following the city’s policies.
Former chairman of the city’s People’s Committee Văn Hữu Chiến, 66, asked the court to re-consider the punishment and decision on civilian liability. He was given a combined sentence of 12 years in prison on the same charges as Minh.
Phan Văn Anh Vũ appealed against the first-instance sentence, under which he has to serve 30 years in prison also on the charges of breaching regulations on managing and using State assets that caused losses and wastefulness, and violations of land management regulations.
The other defendants argued that they only followed instructions of their superiors and asked for reduced sentences.
According to the verdict at the first-instance trial, Minh and Chiến were tasked with managing State assets and public land in the city during their time in office between 2006 and 2014.
The two repeatedly signed orders to illegally transfer land use rights over to Vũ at much lower prices than those regulated by the Đà Nẵng People’s Committee.
At the time of the first-instance trial, Vũ was already serving a sentence of nine years after Hà Nội People’s Court found him guilty of deliberately disclosing state secrets last year. — VNS