The Director of the Food Safety Department of the Ministry of Health and several other suspects have been taken into custody.

The expanded investigation into the criminal case of "Giving and Receiving Bribes" occurring at the Food Safety Department under the Ministry of Health and related companies in Hanoi and other provinces and cities nationwide has uncovered acts of "Giving and Receiving Bribes" during the process of reviewing dossiers and issuing Certificates of Advertising Content for health supplements.

Based on the documents and evidence collected, on August 28, the Office of the Investigation Police Department of the Ministry of Public Security issued a decision to prosecute, arrest, and detain 10 defendants, prohibit them from leaving their place of residence, and ordered searches of their residences and workplaces at 15 locations, specifically:

The following individuals have been charged and detained: Tran Viet Nga, Director of the Food Safety Department, Ministry of Health; Tran Thi Thu Lieu, Deputy Head of the Food Poisoning Surveillance and Information and Communication Division of the Food Safety Department, Ministry of Health; and Nguyen Thi Hai Ha, specialist in the Standards and Testing Management Division of the Food Safety Department, Ministry of Health, on charges of "Receiving Bribes," as stipulated in Clause 4, Article 354 of the Penal Code.

The following individuals have been charged and placed under house arrest: Phung Thi Thuy Ha, a specialist in the Food Poisoning Surveillance and Information Communication Department of the Food Safety Administration, Ministry of Health; Nguyen Thi Viet Ha, a specialist in the Food Product Management Department of the Food Safety Administration, Ministry of Health, for the crime of "Receiving Bribes," as stipulated in Clause 4, Article 354 of the Penal Code; and Tran Thi Luu, a specialist in the Food Product Management Department of the Food Safety Administration, Ministry of Health, for the crime of "Receiving Bribes," as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 354 of the Penal Code.

The following individuals have been charged and placed under house arrest: Dau Thi Giang, born in 1994, residing at Block 5A, Dai Dong Commune, Nghe An Province, for the crime of "Giving bribes" as stipulated in Clause 4, Article 364 of the Penal Code; and Nguyen Thanh Uyen, born in 1992, residing at Village 9, Hat Mon Commune, Hanoi City, for the crime of "Giving bribes" as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 364 of the Penal Code.

The following individuals were charged, but no preventive measures were applied, against Quach Thi Tra My, born in 1992, residing at Apartment 12A07, Business Tower Apartment Building, No. 1 Thanh Binh Street, Ha Dong Ward, Hanoi, for the crime of "Giving bribes" as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 364 of the Penal Code; and Tran Thi Quynh Trang, born in 1992, residing at No. 6A, Alley 139/69, Hoa Lam Street, Viet Hung Ward, Hanoi, for the crime of "Giving bribes" as stipulated in Clause 4, Article 364 of the Penal Code (due to being temporarily detained at T16 Detention Center, Ministry of Public Security in another case).

The search warrants covered 15 locations, including the residences and workplaces of the defendants at the Food Safety Department, the Ministry of Health, and in various localities.

On August 29th, the Supreme People's Procuratorate (Department 3) issued decisions approving the aforementioned procedural decisions. The Office of the Police Investigation Agency of the Ministry of Public Security then carried out the procedural measures in strict compliance with the law.

Currently, the Office of the Investigation Agency of the Ministry of Public Security is conducting an expanded investigation into the case, clarifying all violations committed by individuals involved in order to strictly handle them according to the law.