A former deputy director of the labor department in the south-central Vietnamese province of Binh Dinh, wanted for property appropriation, has been arrested while hiding in Ho Chi Minh City.

Truong Hai An, the ex-deputy director of the Binh Dinh Department of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs, has been apprehended while holing up in District 12.

“Following his arrest, An was brought back to Binh Dinh Province on Saturday night to assist in the investigation,” Colonel Nguyen Duc Nam, deputy director of the provincial Department of Police, confirmed on Monday.

An was previously wanted for “abuse of trust and appropriation of property” and was classified as an “extraordinarily dangerous” suspect.

Initial investigations showed that An managed to mobilize a large amount of money from local people, claiming he would spend the money on real estate investment projects in Quy Nhon City, the capital of Binh Dinh, and would pay them back the interest.

However, he did not return the money as promised and instead left his place of residence along with his family in June 2019.

The department later received many petitions about An’s fraud, which was estimated to be worth tens of billions of Vietnamese dong (VND10 billion = US$430,000).

An had been deputy director of the provincial Department of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs since early October 2017.

In September 2019, the Binh Dinh People’s Committee signed a decision to dismiss An as a disciplinary action against his violations.

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