Former hospital director recommended 15-17 years for 47 billion dong pharmaceutical bribe

Huynh Nguyen Loc, former director of the Ho Chi Minh City institute of traditional medicine, is accused of agreeing to 47 billion dong in commissions from a pharmaceutical company, allegedly concealed by having an assistant receive the payments.

On 30/1, after 4 working days, at the Hanoi People's Court, a representative of the city People's Procuracy announced the indictment and proposed sentences for 23 defendants in a bribery and property appropriation fraud case involving a pharmaceutical company and 13 hospitals and medical centers nationwide.

Loc, 45 years old, former director of the Ho Chi Minh City institute of traditional medicine, is accused of receiving the most bribes among 18 suspects in this case. To conceal his act of receiving money from Pham Van Cach, chairman of the board of directors of Son Lam pharmaceutical joint stock company, he instructed an assistant to receive it on his behalf.

During the trial, Loc was assessed by the People's Procuracy as not fully cooperative. However, he used mot part of the bribe money to purchase medical equipment for Covid-19 prevention and proactively returned 7 billion dong to Cach before his acts were discovered.

The defendants in this case are linked to hai groups of violations: fraudulent invoices and drug origins to illegally profit from social insurance payments, and giving and receiving bribes to funnel drugs into many hospitals.

In the thu nhat group of violations, the People's Procuracy determined that Quyen, owner of LanQ Hospital in Bac Giang province, colluded for Cach’s Son Lam company to win the drug supply bid.

The drug prices were then inflated by the hai owners, who used other drugs, relabeling them with Son Lam’s brand, for sale during patient treatment at the hospital. LanQ was subsequently paid 40 billion dong by Bac Giang provincial social insurance. Of this, 18 billion dong was identified as illegally profited money from fraudulent acts.

Huynh Nguyen Loc, former director of the Ho Chi Minh City institute of traditional medicine. Photo: *Danh Lam*

During this process, Lai, former director of Bac Giang provincial social insurance, was bribed 700 million dong by LanQ to receive advances and quick drug payments despite LanQ not having sufficient documents.

At the trial, Lai admitted receiving the money but complained about businesses "rushing into his office", stuffing envelopes with money into documents, or chasing him to hand over cash.

Than Duc Lai, former director of Bac Giang provincial social insurance. Photo: *Danh Lam*

In the thu hai group of violations, related to Cach and the process of bribing 71 billion dong to directors of 13 hospitals to sell drugs and medicinal materials in the institutions they managed.

Cach testified that he gave the money to avoid being "hindered". Money was transferred or directly handed as cash, either to hospital directors or to accounts of acquaintances, depending on their preference.

For example, Huong, former director of Thai Nguyen provincial hospital of traditional medicine, would instruct transfers to her sister's account, noting the transfer content as "land deposit". Meanwhile, Loc, former director of the Ho Chi Minh City institute of traditional medicine, instructed an assistant to pick it up at a hotel.

Loc is accused of receiving 47 billion dong and using "secret codes" each time a payment was successfully made. However, in court, he vehemently denied it, stating he "had no need" to accept bribes as he earned a lot of money and had well-off friends who often supported him.