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To Anh Dung, former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, has been proposed to be prosecuted for the crime of bribery. (Photo: SGGP) |
The investigation agency of the Ministry of Public Security determined that when carrying out assigned tasks, To Anh Dung, former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, instructed his subordinates to include friendly companies in the list and implementation plan of "combo flights" and received a total of VND21.5 billion in bribes.
On the morning of April 4, the investigation agency of the Ministry of Public Security completed the investigation into the case of "Bribery, Bribery Brokerage, Bribe Receiving, Abuse of Power while Performing Official Duties, and Fraudulent Appropriation of Property" at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hanoi city, and other provinces and cities.
At the same time, they transferred the case files to the Supreme People's Procuracy and proposed the prosecution of 54 suspects. Among them is To Anh Dung, former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.
According to the investigation's conclusion, as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, To Anh Dung was responsible for approving the plan to organize a flight based on the proposal of the Consular Department to seek opinions from members of the Five Ministries' working group.
During the process of performing his duties, To Anh Dung instructed his subordinates to put familiar companies on the list and the implementation plan of the combo flights.
The investigation found that To Anh Dung had supported and facilitated the licensing for the companies to carry out the combo flights and had received a total of VND21.5 billion in bribes, which included VND14.1 billion and US$320,000, from representatives of the companies.
"The behavior of the defendant To Anh Dung constitutes the crime of accepting bribes, as stipulated in Clause 4, Article 354 of the Penal Code," the conclusion stated.
During the investigation process, the defendant To Anh Dung realized his wrongdoing, voluntarily returning VND2 billion. He also sincerely confessed, repented, and actively cooperated with the investigative agency to clarify his own and related individuals' criminal acts.
Former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs To Anh Dung has been proposed to apply the mitigating circumstances of criminal responsibility provided for in points b, s, t, v, and x of Clause 1, Article 51 of the Penal Code and Resolution No.03/2020/NQ-HDTP dated December 30, 2020, of the Supreme People's Court guiding the application of some provisions of the Penal Code in determining the punishment framework.
To Anh Dung was indicted and temporarily detained by the Investigative Agency of the Ministry of Public Security on April 14, 2022, after expanding the investigation into the case. Indicted along with Dung were Pham Trung Kien, a specialist in the Department of Medical Equipment and Construction under the Ministry of Health, and Vu Anh Tuan, a former officer of the Vietnam Immigration Department under the Ministry of Public Security.
At the end of September 2022, the Party Central Committee decided to expel To Anh Dung from the Party. The Party Central Committee determined that To Anh Dung had been negligent and violated Party regulations and State laws in leading, directing, advising, and proposing the organization of flights to repatriate Vietnamese citizens during the Covid-19 pandemic; he also received bribes and was indicted and temporarily detained by the investigative agency.
