Forestry Director Arrested for Corruption in Hue City

Pham Ngoc Dung, the Director of the North Song Huong Protective Forest Management Board in Hue City, faces charges of abuse of power. The investigation centers on forest restoration projects totaling 210 hectares, with contract values exceeding 18.5 billion VND.

According to case records, Dung and a group of officials, including Huynh Tri, Ho Vinh Hung, Duong Tien Manh, and Ngo Duc Thach, along with leaders from Minh An Construction and Forestry Services Co., Ltd., are accused of falsifying acceptance reports. Despite knowing the contractor, Minh An, skipped mandatory technical steps, they allegedly certified the projects as meeting quality standards.

This alleged fraudulent activity resulted in a loss of over 750 million VND for the Hue City Forest Protection and Development Fund. Compounding the issue, after the irregularities were discovered, Dung and Le Hong Khanh, who managed Minh An, reportedly directed subordinates to mislead investigators and destroy related documents. The local prosecutor's office has approved the arrest and detention of the involved parties.