Hanoi (VNA) – The High-levelPeople’s Court in Hanoi on February 21 reduced sentences for three defendants,including former Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Le BachHong, while upholding penalties for three others involved in violations at theVietnam Social Security (VSS).

The defendants at the appeal trial consisted ofNguyen Huy Ban (former General Director of the VSS), Le Bach Hong (formerDeputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and former GeneralDirector of the VSS), Nguyen Phuoc Tuong (former chief accountant of the VSS),Hoang Ha and Tran Tien Vy (former heads of the general planning division underthe VSS’s planning-finance department).

Some of them said they only committed theoffence of “lacking responsibility, causing serious consequences”, not“deliberately violating the State’s regulations on economic management, causingserious consequences”.

According to the first-instance trial’s verdict,the case related to the VSS’s illegal lending tothe Agribank Financial Leasing Company No. 2 (ALC II). In late 2018,the ALC II went bankrupt and was unable to repay the debts. The VSS has yet torecover over 1.7 trillion VND (73.1 million USD) of the loans and theirinterest from the ALC II.

Le Bach Hong was charged with signing anddirecting the execution of three loan contracts with the ALC II. The loans areunable to be recovered, thus causing a loss of over 434 billion VND to theState.

Meanwhile, former VSS General Director NguyenHuy Ban was charged with signing and directing the execution of 11 contractsillegally lending the ALC II 630 billion VND, causing a loss of more than 1.263trillion VND (including interest) to the State.

At the appeal trial, the jury concluded that Banheld the main role in this case, and he was the first to decide on the illegallending to the ALC II. Hong held the second role and directly ordered theimplementation of two loan contracts which ran counter to the State’sregulations.

However, after taking into account theircontributions in the past, the jury decided to reduce the prison sentence forHong by nine months to five years and three months, and for Ban by two years to12 years, for “deliberately violating the State’s regulations on economicmanagement, causing serious consequences”.

The court upheld the punishment of 14 years injail for Nguyen Phuoc Tuong for the same offence.

It also reduced the prison sentence for Hoang Haby three years to four years and sustained the penalty of three years in prisonfor Tran Tien Vy. Both were found to have “lacked responsibility, causingserious consequences”./.