Hanoi (VNA) – The People’s Court of Hanoi onJanuary 30 sentenced Phan Van Anh Vu, Chairman of the Board of Directors of theBac Nam 79 Construction Company and former Chairman of the Nova Bac Nam 79 Company,to 15 years in jail for “abusing position and power while performing duties”under Article 356 of the 2015 Penal Code.

Vu, born in 1975, is a formerSenior Lieutenant Colonel and deputy head of a division at the General DepartmentV of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS).

His accomplices, Nguyen Huu Bach (born in 1963, formerColonel and deputy head of Department B61 under the General Department V) andPhan Huu Tuan (born in 1955, former Lieutenant General and Deputy GeneralDirector of the General Department V), each received five years imprisonment forthe same charge.

Agreeing with the previous judge on the charge of “deliberately disclosing State secrets,” thetotal sentences of Bach and Tuan are 11 years and 12 years inprison, respectively.

However, the total sentence for Vu has yet to beannounced. He was previously given eight years in jail by the High People's Court in Hanoi on October 31, 2018.

Meanwhile, twoother accomplices of Vu, Bui Van Thanh (born in 1959, formerLieutenant General and Deputy Minister of the MPS), and Tran Viet Tan (born in1955, former Senior Lieutenant General and Deputy Minister of the MPS), weresentenced to 30 months and 36 months in prison, respectively, for the samecharge of “showing irresponsibility, causing serious consequences” underArticle 285 of the 1999 Penal Code.

According to the indictment of the procuracy, whileoperating the Bac Nam 79 Construction and Nova Bac Nam 79 Companies, Phan VanAnh Vu, under the name of the MPS,asked ministries, sectors, and local administrations to rent land to him aswell as transfer to him the right to use land and property on land of publichousing and land projects in prime positions in Da Nang city and Ho Chi MinhCity, which was not in line with State regulations.

He then went on to make them his own properties or thoseof his relatives, transferred them, or put them under shared ownership withother people to earn illegal profits. Bach and Tuan drafted, signed, andsubmitted documents advising the General Department V to issue documentsenabling Vu to commit such violations.

Under the first instance judgment, Vu, with the highestrole in the case, has to bear responsibility for a loss of over 135 billion VNDto the State.

Bach and Tuan caused a total loss of 132 billion VND. Meanwhile,with their irresponsibility, Tan’s activities led to a loss of 36 billion VND,while losses caused by Thanh are just over 3.5 billion VND. Both Tan and Thanh expressedtheir regret at the court.

The trial court also proposed that the InvestigationPolice Agency continue clarifying the legacy of land allocation made byauthorised agencies in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang to uncover violations.–VNA