On 4/2, the An Giang Provincial People's Court sentenced former vice chairmen of the Long Xuyen City People's Committee, Nguyen Bao Sinh (50) and Dao Van Ngoc (63), to three years in prison (suspended sentence) for the crime of Irresponsibility Causing Serious Consequences.

Former vice chairman Huynh Giang Son (65) received a two-year suspended sentence.

26 former leaders and officials from various agencies and units involved in compensation and resettlement violations in Long Xuyen City (now Long Xuyen ward) received sentences ranging from one year of non-custodial re-education to three years in prison, with suspended sentences.

The defendants at the trial. *Photo: Minh Khang*

According to the indictment, during the 2018-2022 period, Vo Van Trung, former deputy director of the Long Xuyen Area Investment and Construction Project Management Board, and concurrently deputy director of the Long Xuyen Land Fund Development Center, abused his position and power to create 5 fraudulent files related to compensation and resettlement.

Trung himself created resettlement files that did not reflect reality, drafted decisions to allocate land to his family members, forged signatures of Long Xuyen City People's Committee leaders, and created fake land use rights transfer contracts to complete land allocation procedures and issue certificates.

After receiving the certificates, Trung continued to transfer them to others for illicit gain. On 1/8/2022, Trung was found deceased in his home garden.

Expanding the investigation into the 2010-2022 period, authorities determined that Trung had created a total of 23 fraudulent files, of which 19 files resulted in land use rights certificates being issued to ineligible individuals.

The investigative agency concluded that leaders of many agencies in former Long Xuyen City were irresponsible in verifying the legality of files at the stages of verification, appraisal, recommendation, and approval, leading to serious consequences.

Specifically, Mr. Sinh signed 16 files, causing damages exceeding 4,8 billion dong; Mr. Ngoc signed 10 files, causing damages exceeding 3,5 billion dong; and Mr. Son signed one file, causing damages of 1,5 billion dong.

An Minh