Vietnam fires four more police officers over alleged links to underworld gang
HANOI - Vietnam has fired four more police officers, including a local
police chief, for alleged links to an underworld gang, bringing the
number
of police dismissed in the huge corruption case to nearly 30,
state-controlled media reported Friday.
The local police chief in Ho Chi Minh City, two deputies and another
officer
were fired Thursday for allegedly receiving at least 200,000 dong (dlrs
13)
a week to protect the gang's gambling operations, the Tuoi Tre (Youth)
newspaper said.
Scores of other police officers in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon,
have
been disciplined or suspended for reportedly receiving payoffs to
protect
the gang's operations, including gambling, restaurants, karaoke bars and
hotels.
State-controlled media say 149 people — including 12 police officers,
three
prosecutors and two journalists — will be brought to trial in November
for
alleged links to the gang.
The gang's suspected leader, Truong Van "Nam" Cam, was arrested last
December on charges of murder, gambling, sheltering criminals and
bribery.
Local media quoted National Deputy Police Chief Nguyen Viet Thanh as
saying
the trial is expected to last three months. It is likely to be the
largest
trial ever in communist-ruled Vietnam in terms of both the number of
defendants and duration, a court official in Ho Chi Minh City said.
The Nam Cam case has shocked the Communist Party and the government,
which
have vowed to bring anyone involved to justice. Many Vietnamese believe,
however, that more officials may be linked to the case.
The highest officials implicated so far are a deputy minister of public
security and the head of the state radio. Both lost their party central
committee memberships in July and their posts earlier last month.
Neither
has been formally charged.
The ruling Communist Party has launched a series of anti-corruption
campaigns, but citizens continue to complain of widespread graft.
The Associated Press - September 6, 2002
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