Quang Ninh customs officials suspended over smuggling case

Several customs officials in Quang Ninh Province have been suspended for an investigation over a large smuggling case in the area in which a whole family was arrested.

Several customs officials in Quang Ninh Province have been suspended for an investigation over a large smuggling case in the area in which a whole family was arrested.

  

Quang Ninh customs officials suspended over smuggling case

The Vietnam Customs issued orders to suspend six employees at Quang Ninh Customs Department. Both the head and vice head of the department will be suspended for 15 days. In addition, a team leader under the Customs Department of Bac Phong Sinh Border Gate and three other employees will also be suspended.

The Vietnam Customs announced that the investigation over the smuggling case which was discovered at Bac Phong Sinh Border Gate on December 17 will be carried out transparently.

On December 24, the Ministry of Public Security started the prosecution procedures against 10 people suspected of operating a well-organised smuggling ring. The ring was said to have been led by Dao Van Chap from Mong Cai City. Chap's wife, Pham Thi Ha, and his two sons, Dao Tuan Duy and Dao Manh Duc, were also arrested. Many other accomplices were also arrested.

The police carried out an inspection at various warehouses at Bac Phong Sinh Border Gate and Mong Cai City at midnight on December 17 and seized 300 tonnes of smuggled goods including clothes, cosmetics, car spare parts and electronic devices. They also caught many trucks carrying smuggled goods and arrested 30 suspects.

Afterwards, the police expanded the investigation and continued to inspect the warehouses in Hung Yen and Hanoi, collecting 200 tonnes of smuggled goods and 20 trucks.

Initial investigation shows that the smuggling activities have been carried out for a long time. Each day, over 200 tonnes of goods worth tens of billions of VND were transferred through the border.