HCMC – Le Duc Tho, former secretary of Ben Tre Province’s Party Committee, faces a possible combined jail term of 28-29 years for taking bribes and abusing his position for personal gains.
On November 25, the People’s Procuracy of HCMC announced its indictment, recommending sentences for 15 defendants involved in the Xuyen Viet Oil case and related entities.
The prosecution proposed 15 to 15.5 years in prison for Tho for taking bribes and an additional 13 to 13.5 years for abusing his authority. The indictment also suggests a fine of VND100 million for each charge.
Mai Thi Hong Hanh, chairwoman of the Members’ Council of Xuyen Viet Oil Company, could face 10-12 years in prison for giving bribes and 20 years for violating regulations on state asset management and use, resulting in losses and wastefulness. Her total recommended sentence is 30 years.
According to the indictment, Tho, during his tenure as board chairman at VietinBank from 2018 to June 2021, leveraged his authority to approve credit limits and loan applications for businesses. He reportedly accepted bribes totaling US$600,000 in exchange for facilitating Xuyen Viet Oil’s credit limit approval.
In July 2021, as secretary of the Party Committee of Ben Tre Province, Tho influenced the VietinBank Ben Tre branch director to increase Xuyen Viet Oil’s credit limit to VND100 billion, offering preferential interest rates and a 40% collateral ratio.
The investigation found that Tho received money and assets from Hanh multiple times, amounting to VND22.8 billion.
Overall, Tho is accused of accepting bribes and abusing his position to amass personal gains exceeding VND33 billion.
