Former Hanoi chairman accused of incurring $800,000 loss over Covid test kit scam

Anh was recommended to be charged with "Offences against regulations in the use of State property leading to losses or wastefulness" by police under the Ministry of Public Security on Friday.

Authorities said Anh incurred a loss of VND19 billion to state property and illegally gained from a Covid-19 test kit scam involving the Viet A company between March and December 2020.

The same day, former Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long was recommended to be charged with receiving bribes worth $2.25 million for the registration for distribution and price negotiation of Covid-19 test kits by Viet A.

Former Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long speaks at a conference in January 2022. Photo by Huy Vu

Phan Quoc Viet, general director of Viet A, admitted in January 2022 that he had inflated the price of Covid-19 test kits by 45% and sent around $35.2 million as "bonuses" to company partners. Viet said he had bribed certain individuals.

On August 27, 2020, Viet brought a bag containing $200,000, masks and hand sanitizers to the headquarters of the science ministry, where he was taken to Anh’s office.

Viet gave the bag to Anh, saying it was a "thank you gift" and Anh put bag in a bedroom at the office.

In September 2020, when Anh cleaned up the office to be moved to the Hanoi People’s Committee, he discovered the bag contained money, authorities said.

Anh was the minister of Science and Technology from April 2016 to September 2020, and chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee from September 2020 to June 2022, when he was arrested for his involvement in crime.

Long was deputy health minister from December 2011, until he was assigned in October 2018 to be the deputy head of the Central Propaganda Department of the Central Party Committee. He returned to his position as deputy health minister in January 2020, and became the health minister in November 2020. He was arrested in June 2022.