May 15, appeal trial of Viet A case
On the morning of May 15, the High People's Court in Hanoi will open an appeal hearing to consider the appeal of former Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long and 10 other defendants in the Viet A case.
On the morning of May 15, the High People's Court in Hanoi will open an appeal hearing to consider the appeal of former Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long and 10 other defendants in the test kit case that occurred at Viet A Technology Joint Stock Company (abbreviated as Viet A Company), the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and related units and organizations.
The appeal hearing is scheduled to last for 3 days. In this case, defendant Phan Quoc Viet, Chairman of the Board of Directors and General Director of Viet A Company, and defendant Nguyen Thanh Long (former Minister of Health) both appealed for a reduction in their sentences. Defendant Vu Dinh Hiep (Deputy General Director of Viet A Company) appealed to review and reassess the true nature of the case and the charges against him.
Also filing appeals are defendant Trinh Thanh Hung (former Deputy Director of the Department of Science and Technology of Economic and Technical Sectors, Ministry of Science and Technology), defendant Pham Duy Tuyen (former Director of CDC Hai Duong), defendant Nguyen Nam Lien (former Director of the Department of Financial Planning, Ministry of Health)...
Viet A Company also appealed to not confiscate to the state budget the amount of money determined to be illegally profited from selling test kits to organizations and individuals that were not considered.prosecuteIn the case, Viet A Company also requested that organizations that purchased test kits without going through the bidding process must pay Viet A Company according to the signed contract.
Viet A Company also requested the Court of Appeal to cancel the measures of freezing and restricting transactions on the bank accounts of Viet A Company and companies in the company's system that are not related to the case... A number of individuals with related rights and obligations also appealed, requesting the Court of Appeal to consider the assets related to them.
Previously, on January 12, 2024, the Hanoi People's Court announced the first instance verdict for 38 defendants in the Viet A test kit case. Defendant Phan Quoc Viet was sentenced to 29 years in prison for two crimes: "Giving bribes" and "Violating bidding regulations causing serious consequences". Defendant Nguyen Thanh Long was sentenced to 18 years in prison for "Receiving bribes".
Defendant Trinh Thanh Hung was sentenced to 14 years in prison for “Accepting bribes”... The remaining defendants were sentenced to sentences commensurate with their criminal acts for many crimes including: “Giving bribes”, “Receiving bribes”, “Taking advantage of positions and powers while performing official duties”, “Violating bidding regulations causing serious consequences”, “Taking advantage of influence over people with positions and powers for personal gain”.