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​Former top police chiefs indicted in Vietnam’s massive online gambling case

​Former top police chiefs indicted in Vietnam’s massive online gambling case

Saturday, September 01, 2018, 10:38 GMT+7

Two former top police officials in Vietnam were indicted at a court in the northern province of Phu Tho on Friday for their leadership roles in a massive online gambling ring busted in April.

The 235-page indictment completed by the People’s Procuracy of Phu Tho accuses Phan Van Vinh, former general director of the Police General Department under the Ministry of Public Security, and Nguyen Thanh Hoa, former director of the ministry’s Hi-Tech Crimes Department, of abusing their positions and power while performing public duty.

The provincial Procuracy has also decided to bring the two to court.

If found guilty, the police duo will face prison terms of between five and ten years according to Vietnamese laws.

The indictment also accuses 90 other defendants in the same case of crimes including gambling, gambling organizing, money laundering, illegal trade of invoices, and assets appropriation via the Internet.

More than VND1.34 trillion (US$57.29 million) was seized by Phu Tho Police during a high-profile crackdown on a massive online gambling ring in April.

In July, the police launched criminal prosecution against 92 suspects, including the two policemen and top leaders in telecom and tech companies accused of maintaining websites where illegal gambling activities took place.

The Procuracy held that Vinh’s acts had led to serious consequences and badly affected the prestige of the police force, while Hoa was accused of covering up the case.

The two have been stripped off their ranks and titles in the Ministry of Public Security.

The indictment further points out that three major mobile carriers in Vietnam – Viettel, Vinaphone and MobiFone – raked in more than VND1.23 trillion ($52.59 million) in total from the gambling activities.

Thirty-three local banks also made combined profit of VND965 million ($41,300) from the gambling ring’s operations.

The Procuracy stands that these revenues stem from illegal activities and therefore must be up for recollection.

Tuan Son / Tuoi Tre News

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