Authorities in the central city of Danang are checking information relating to two foreign tourists seen begging for money on a local street.
Photos of a foreign man and woman standing near the Ton Duc Thang-Ngo Van So intersection in Lien Chieu District holding a sign in Vietnamese saying: "Need help, running out of money" went viral on social media from Tuesday evening.
Photos of a foreign man and woman standing near the Ton Duc Thang-Ngo Van So intersection in Lien Chieu District holding a sign in Vietnamese saying: "Need help, running out of money" went viral on social media from Tuesday evening.
Just some days earlier, a Russian man was also seen standing on central streets in Thanh Khe District holding a sign in Vietnamese saying: "I am travelling without money. Please support my trip."
Speaking to the VietNamNet Newspaper, deputy director of Danang City Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Nguyen Thi Thu Huong, said that she has asked concerned agencies to investigate these cases.
"Initial investigations showed that the man who was seen in Thanh Khe District carries a Russian passport and a tourist visa effective until March 14," the official said. "Local people said that he begged for money in the daytime and then visited bars at night."
The department dispatched staff to remind the man not to beg for money as it is illegal under Vietnamese law, and he had not been seen in the area anymore.
This is not the first time foreign tourists have been seen begging in Vietnam. The same situation was also seen in the southern tourist island of Phu Quoc several times.