On 22/1, Thang, team leader of Binh Hung Hoa Cremation Center, along with Cao Hoang Phuc and Cao Thai Phi, were indicted and temporarily detained by the Economic Police Department (PC03) of Ho Chi Minh City Police (TP HCM) for abusing power and position while on duty.

The three suspects arrested. Photo: Ho Chi Minh City Police

Investigators determined the defendants' violations occurred from July to mid-August 2021, a period when Ho Chi Minh City was severely affected by Covid-19. The high death toll led to cremation centers operating at full capacity.

In his role overseeing all operations at the center, Thang allegedly directed Phuc and Phi to purchase urns and nameplates from external suppliers instead of from the contracted supplier of the Ho Chi Minh City Urban Environment Company. These goods were not recorded in the accounting books.

The group did not disclose the listed prices but resold the items to funeral homes at higher rates, pocketing a profit of over 219 million VND. Thang was identified as the mastermind, director, and primary beneficiary of this scheme.

Beyond these inflated prices, investigators accuse Thang of separately receiving nearly 480 million VND in illicit kickbacks from various funeral homes. The total illegal profit this defendant accrued during more than a month at the peak of the pandemic reached nearly 600 million VND.

According to investigators, the case sparked public outrage as the suspects exploited the height of the Covid-19 pandemic to profit from people's grief. Despite the intricate concealment of their criminal acts, which leveraged the unique circumstances of the pandemic to legitimize their revenue and expenditure processes, police reviewed operational procedures, bank account statements, and worked with numerous funeral service providers to clarify the defendants' actions.

Ho Chi Minh City Police urge any funeral homes involved in the case to contact Team 4 (PC03) to provide information and documents for the investigation.

Quoc Thang