Another person arrested in the case of the journalist who defrauded a sand barge owner.
Pham Hung, 50 years old, is accused of colluding with the General Secretary of the online magazine Van Hien to defraud a sand barge owner of 1 billion VND.
On February 12th, Hung was charged and taken into custody by the Bac Ninh Provincial Police for investigation into a crime.Fraudulent appropriation of propertyTwo months earlier, police also arrested Ngo Van Toi, General Secretary of the online magazine Van Hien, on the same charges.
 |
| Pham Hung at the investigative agency. Photo: Provided by the police. |
According to initial investigations, in May 2021, a 53-year-old woman in Bac Giang province had a sand barge that violated administrative regulations and was temporarily seized by authorities. Through an introduction, the barge owner met Toi for assistance.
Authorities allege that Toi claimed to have extensive connections and the ability to get the sand barge released ahead of schedule, receiving 1 billion VND in return. Toi kept 300 million VND and gave 700 million VND to Hung. However, after Toi's arrest, Hung fled his residence.
The investigating agency alleges that the suspect, Tới, "exploited the name of journalism" and "the extreme hardship and lack of understanding of the victims" to commit fraud. Tới also "did not cooperate" when summoned.
