HCMC – Tran Ky Hinh, former head of Vietnam Register, was arrested yesterday, January 17, for allegedly taking bribes from automobile testing centers, according to the HCMC Police Department.
His arrest is the latest development of the Ministry of Public Security’s (MPS) broader probe into bribe taking and irregularities found at multiple vehicle registration and inspection centers in the country, including those in HCMC and some Mekong Delta provinces.
The investigation shows that between 2014 and August 2021, Tran Hinh Ky directed Tran Anh Quan, acting head of the Automobile Inspection Division, to receive bribes from auto testing centers, and approve their operations although they failed to meet the standards.
As head of Vietnam Register, Hinh neglected his responsibilities and took bribes from auto testing centers to overlook their violations in registration and inspection activities.
Hoang Huu Thinh and Truong Duy Duc from two vehicle testing centers and two technicians at Viet Net Co, namely Ho Ngoc Nam and Tran The Khanh Ho, were also arrested on the same day for manufacturing, trading, and providing instruments, equipment and software for illegal purposes.
The police found that those four people colluded with each other to create software to access the auto testing centers’ database and manipulated data. After that, they sold the software to several auto testing centers for illegal purposes.
The Ministry of Public Security and the police departments of HCMC and other provinces have been coordinating to probe for signs of bribe brokering, giving and taking, and falsifying documents at auto registration and inspection centers throughout the country.
Some 89 individuals have been charged, including Dang Viet Ha, director of Vietnam Register, Tran Anh Quan, acting head of the Automobile Inspection Division at Vietnam Register, Dang Tran Khanh, deputy head of this division, and directors and deputy directors of many auto testing centers.
Over 20 auto testing centers in the country have been suspended due to their alleged irregularities.
