This decisive move follows police dismantling several criminal rings involved in organ trading via social media. On 28/2, the Criminal Police Department (Ministry of Public Security) announced that Hanoi Police initiated legal proceedings against Doan Van Hoa, 37 years old, and two accomplices, Nguyen Duc Xuan and Le Van Son. They are under investigation for operating a large-scale organ trading ring disguised as humanitarian organ donation.
Through social media platforms, Hoa's group sought out sellers and directly negotiated with buyers. They charged VND 1.2-1.5 billion for a liver and VND 800-950 million for a kidney. The brokers required patients to pay the full amount upfront before the transplant. However, they paid sellers only about half of that sum: VND 600-800 million for a liver and VND 300-450 million for a kidney. By covering all living and testing expenses, the group controlled the sellers while pocketing hundreds of millions of dong in profit from each successful transplant surgery.
Leaders of the Ministry of Health condemned these profiteering acts, stating they directly endanger public safety, violate medical ethics, and severely damage the medical sector's reputation. To thoroughly address this issue, the Ministry of Health directed medical facilities to strictly implement the Law on Donation, Removal, and Transplantation of Human Tissues and Organs. Hospital heads will be held fully accountable under the law for any violations occurring within their units due to lax management.
During the intake process, doctors and medical staff must carefully review records and thoroughly verify the relationship between living donors and recipients. Hospitals must immediately refuse any surgery if records lack transparency or show signs of brokering. Facilities are also responsible for promptly reporting suspicious cases to authorities for coordinated investigation and strict handling.
Vietnam currently faces a significant demand for life-sustaining organ transplants, but organs donated from brain-dead individuals are scarce. Statistics from 2010 to the present show only about 270 brain-dead organ donors. Despite this challenge, doctors have successfully performed thousands of transplants, including 8,904 kidney, 754 liver, 126 heart, and 14 lung transplants. The substantial disparity between organ supply and actual demand creates a loophole for black market organ trafficking rings to operate.
Le Nga
