A Vietnamese woman working as an interpreter was arrested in Da Nang on Wednesday for helping to organize the illegal entry of a Chinese national into Vietnam under the guise of an ‘expert.'

Da Nang police on the same day indicted the woman – Le Thi Thanh Loc, 29, hailing from north-central Ha Tinh Province and a current resident of Da Nang’s Son Tra District.

Authorities also searched her residence and seized relevant documents for their investigation into the case.

Loc was the third person detained and indicted in the case, following charges levied against Jiang Fei, a Chinese national, and Vietnamese citizen Le Thi Kim Anh on June 11.

According to initial information, Loc was a Chinese language interpreter at Boviet Vietnam Investment Management Co. Ltd., which Jiang had asked Anh to establish and manage as its director.

Loc was also responsible for assisting Anh in preparing related documents and working with service companies to legalize the unlawful entries of foreigners into Vietnam under the cover of experts.

In March this year, Jiang asked Anh to use the company’s legal status to sponsor the migration of fellow Chinese national Wang Xu to Vietnam as an expert. 

Under Vietnam’s current COVID-19 prevention guidelines, ‘experts’ are included on the priority list for entry into the country. 

Anh used her position at the company to prepare the necessary documents and asked a service company to proceed with procedures for Wang to enter Vietnam as her company’s expert at a cost of VND60 million (US$2,600).

In fact, after his entry, Wang worked for Jiang.

Further investigation into Jiang and Anh’s case led to the arrest and indictment of Loc.

Vietnam began denying entry to foreign nationals on March 22, 2020 and currently only allows foreigners who are investors, experts, skilled workers, and business managers to get in. 

They are required to present certificates showing they tested negative for COVID-19 within three days before their flights and comply with Vietnam’s coronavirus quarantine regulations upon their arrival.

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