Bui Tien Dung, Former General Manager of Project Management Unit 18 (PMU18) and 9 accused accomplices will appear in court again on March 29.
They are involved in accusations of embezzlement in association with the Bai Chay Bridge construction project.
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| Bui Tien Dung after the PMU18 trial on the 2nd period |
The Bai Chay bridge project was implemented at a cost of over VND 1.3 trillion ($74.7 million) on Highway 18 in the northern coastal Quang Ninh province. PMU 18 was assigned by the Ministry of Transport to manage the project.
Bui Tien Dung is already in jail serving a 13-year sentence stemming from bribery and gambling charges in 2007.
He is now being charged with asset misappropriation and is also the only defendant currently under arrest.
His 8 accused accomplices in the case are Nguyen Vu Nam, Ex-Manger of the Project Implementation Division 6 (PID 6) under PMU18; Nguyen Cong Dung, an expert of PID6; Nghiem Phu Son, Deputy Manger of PID6; Le Minh Giang, Deputy Manger of PID5; Nguyen Huu Minh, Engineer of Transport Construction Corporation No 1 cum Managing Director of BC1 tender package under Bai Chay Bridge construction project; Nguyen Viet Dung, Managing Director of BC3 tender package under Bai Chay Bridge construction project; Nguyen Duc Hung and Nguyen Huu Long, Head of project consulting office at different periods.
The 9th defendant was Pham Tien Dung, former head of PMU18's Economic and Planning Office, who died while in jail during the 2009 investigation process.
The Former General Manager of PMU18 (nicknamed Dung General) played the main role in the case and asked Pham Tien Dung (nicknamed Dung Small) to make a fake list of 26 non-existent designing consultants for the Bai Chay Bridge project to appropriate VND3.4 billion ($176,655) worth of salary payments for the 26 non-existent consultants from August 2003 – February 2007.
They shared the appropriated money together which ranged in payments of VND10 million ($520) to VND365 million ($19,000).
In addition, Dung “General” asked Dung “Small” to give VND500 million ($26,000) to Do Kim Quy, PMU's Vice General Director as a gift when he retired. Despite knowing that it was an illegal gift, Quy did not denounce it. He confessed and returned the money only when the police uncovered the case.