Duong Van Luong was recently arrested and detained by Hanoi Police on charges of bribery.

Initial investigations revealed Luong enabled Bui Thi Thanh Thuy, a patient undergoing mandatory treatment, to be released. Thuy subsequently participated in a 60 kg drug trafficking ring. When the ring was dismantled, Thuy confessed she was not mentally ill, and her previous evaluation conclusions were falsified. Luong, then deputy director, allegedly received 300 million dong to falsify these findings.

This arrest marks a new development in Hanoi Police's broader investigation into drug trafficking, illegal drug use, bribery, abuse of power, and gambling in Hanoi and related units. So far, 54 people have been charged.

Suspect Duong Van Luong. *Photo: Police*

Authorities stated that Nguyen Mai Anh, 46, and her husband, Le Van Dong, 47, manipulated the entire Central Institute of Forensic Psychiatry (CIFP), from top leadership to security personnel. This created a closed system for criminal activity. This ring involved falsified psychiatric evaluations, enabling many criminals undergoing mandatory mental health treatment at the CIFP to be released and continue committing crimes.

In some instances, Mai Anh received billions of dong, then transferred hundreds of millions to Institute Director Tran Van Truong. Truong accepted the money and distributed it among members of the evaluation council. They would then add numerous false symptoms of mental illness to patient records or inaccurately describe a patient's condition. This process allowed many individuals who were not mentally ill to receive diagnoses of mental illness, thereby qualifying for mandatory mental health treatment and evading criminal responsibility.

The police are expanding the investigation.