HCMC – Mai Tien Dung, former chairman of the Government Office, along with nine other defendants, will face trial on January 16, 2025, on alleged charges of abusing their authority, accepting bribes, and giving bribes in connection with the Dai Ninh case.
The Hanoi People’s Court announced on December 30 that it had decided to bring the Saigon Dai Ninh case to trial. The trial is set to begin on January 16, 2025, and is expected to last five days, including weekends.
Mai Tien Dung, who is also a former member of the Party Central Committee, is charged with abusing his position along with Tran Bich Ngoc, former director of the Government Office’s Department I, and Nguyen Hong Giang, former director of the Government Inspectorate’s Department II.
Six others are charged with receiving bribes, including Tran Duc Quan, former secretary of the Party Committee of Lam Dong; Tran Van Hiep, former chairman of the provincial People’s Committee; and four former officials of the Government Inspectorate.
Nguyen Cao Tri, general director of Saigon Dai Ninh Company, faces charges of offering bribes.
The investigation revealed that in 2010, Saigon Dai Ninh Company received approval to execute the Dai Ninh Commercial, Tourism, and Ecological Resort Urban Area project in Lam Dong.
The Government Inspectorate identified several violations by the company during the project’s execution and recommended that the Prime Minister instruct the provincial government to terminate the project and reclaim the land.
In response, Nguyen Cao Tri bribed officials at the Government Office, the Government Inspectorate, and local authorities to retain the Dai Ninh project.
As a result, officials within the Government Inspectorate issued a new report reversing the recommendation to cancel the project. Local authorities subsequently approved the transfer of the project to Tri and refrained from reclaiming the land.
These violations extended the project timeline, allowing Tri to sell the project to Thien Vuong Real Estate Investment and Development Co., Ltd., part of Novaland Group, earning him a profit of VND2,700 billion.
To achieve this, Tri offered bribes totaling over VND7 billion to officials in the Government Inspectorate, the Provincial Party Committee, and the Lam Dong Provincial People’s Committee. This included five payments amounting to VND2.1 billion to Tran Duc Quan and seven payments totaling VND4.2 billion to Tran Van Hiep.
The prosecution found that, although Mai Tien Dung was not directly responsible for inspections or petition handling, he accepted a petition from Saigon Dai Ninh Company through Tri due to their relationship.
Dung subsequently directed his subordinates to prepare a proposal, seek opinions, and issue instructions regarding the petition transfer, in violation of legal procedures. In return, Tri gifted Dung VND200 million.
