Police have identified Ilyevsky Sergey, a 30-year-old Belarusian man, and another foreigner whose identity remains unrevealed as suspects vandalizing railcars on Ho Chi Minh City’s metro line No. 1 kept at Long Binh Depot in Thu Duc City on April 30.

The municipal police said on Tuesday that they came to the conclusion after inspecting the Long Binh Depot, reviewing camera footage, and questioning security guards and nearby households.

Ilyevsky Sergey is a graffiti artist and entered Vietnam three times, on November 29, 2022, March 7, 2023, and April 27, 2023. He left Vietnam for Singapore on May 3.

Ho Chi Minh City police officers are identifying and looking for the remaining suspect, as well as monitoring if Sergey will enter Vietnam again to question him and clarify the case.

The municipal police also asked police officers in Long Binh Ward, Thu Duc City, where the metro cars are parked, to enhance patrols in a bid to ensure security and order in the ward, especially around the Long Binh Depot, and instruct three main contractors at the depot—Sumitomo, Hitachi, and Thai Son Co. Ltd.—to ensure security in the areas under their management.

They should install more surveillance cameras and lighting systems to monitor the entire area and promptly provide information to police in case of similar incidents.

Police in nearby districts and Thu Duc City were assigned to call on residents to denounce and criticize those damaging the cityscape, including those spraying walls, metro cars, and other surfaces with paint and graffiti.

Vandals have smeared railcars on the first metro line in Ho Chi Minh City twice, in April this year and June last year.

The 19.7-kilometer-long metro line runs from Ben Thanh Market in District 1 to Suoi Tien Theme Park in Thu Duc City.

It has 17 Japanese-manufactured trains with each being 61.5 meters long and able to carry 930 passengers.

The metro service, carrying a price tag of VND43.7 trillion (US$1.9 billion), is now some 95 percent complete and has embarked on three test runs.

Construction of the project is expected to be completed this year.

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