Expected to be the highest penalty imposed in the Project 112 scandal, a 7 or 8 year prison sentence has been suggested for Vu Dinh Thuan, the former Chief of Project 112.
According to representatives from the Prosecution Agency, Thuan conspired with his staff and played a key role in the corruption. He caused the loss of VND4.6 billion ($245,218) and earned VND275 million ($14,666) for himself.
The Prosecution Agency recommends he should be sentenced 7-8 years in prison.
Luong Cao Son, the Secretary of Project 112's Management Board, will also face the same sentence with Thuan because he was an active element of the case and enticed many other people to join, earning over VND700 million ($37,333) for himself.
Luong Cao Phi, who worked for the Construction Publishing House and Luong Cao Phong, Director of the Valuation Centre of the Construction IT Company, could face a sentence of 36-42 months in prison.
Ngo Thi Nham, Deputy Manager of the Sales Department of the Vietnam Book Distribution Corporation, may go to jail for 3-4 years.
Representatives from the Prosecution Agency also highlighted the serious nature of the case. Most of the defendants are senior state officials who conspired with each other to defraud the state’s budget.
Despite knowing how important Project 112 was to national development, defendants intentionally corrupted it according to the prosecution.
“It’s a painful lesson to defendants who were in high ranking positions and broke the law. They have ruined their reputations as well as angered the public,” said a representative from the prosecution.
Before being sentenced, Nguyen Cat Ho, Leader of the Training Unit of the Project 112 Management Board, pleaded guilty to what he was accused of. He explained that he tried to justify himself because he lacked legal knowledge and he was too proud.
DTinews will keep you updated about the trial’s development.