Former VRG chairman and CEO deposits tens of billions of dong, seeks exemption from criminal punishment

On the afternoon of April 9, the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court continued the first-instance trial of 22 defendants in the case involving alleged violations at Vietnam Rubber Group (VRG) and related units.

Defense requests special criminal policy for former VRG General Director

In the proceedings, the defense for defendant Tran Ngoc Thuan (former VRG General Director) presented multiple arguments and asked the court to consider applying a special criminal policy to exempt him from punishment.

The defense said Thuan voluntarily confessed before the case was charged. It also stated that, regarding civil liability, Thuan cooperated with his family to repay the full amount of 37.5 billion dong received from defendant Dang Phuoc Dua, including 26.5 billion dong in cash and a savings book of 11 billion dong. The defense added that Thuan also voluntarily paid an additional 1 billion dong to help remedy the overall consequences.

The defense argued that Thuan’s wrongdoing stemmed from the need to handle a “past event” from the previous term. It said the policy of transferring equity in the land parcel 39-39B in Ben Van Don Ward (noted as Xom Chiao Ward in the source text) had been agreed and implemented since late 2009 by the predecessor.

According to the defense, when Thuan assumed the General Director role, the Group faced difficulties if it did not continue the process, including risks of losing land use rights or state reclamation due to delays. The defense said Thuan chose to proceed to recover debts and limit risk to the enterprise.

The defense also highlighted Thuan’s personal circumstances, saying he is 66 years old and has multiple chronic illnesses. It noted that he has been detained for four months and has shown high self-discipline, arguing that continued isolation from society is unnecessary.

Defense seeks exemption for former acting Chairman of VRG’s Supervisory Board

On the same day, the defense for defendant Le Quang Thung (former acting Chairman of VRG’s Supervisory Board) clarified his role and urged the court to consider special clemency.

The defense said criminal responsibility should be individualized based on the nature and severity of the conduct and the defendant’s specific role at each stage.

Bribery charge and repayment account

Regarding the charge of “receiving bribes,” the defense stated that initially Thung did not realize that the amount of 200,000 Singapore dollars was bribe money. It said the sum came from asking Ms. Le Y Linh to help cover medical expenses for his son in Singapore in 2008. The defense added that Thung repeatedly offered to repay, but Linh refused. It argued that this indicates the initial intent was not to possess or benefit from bribe money, and that once Thung realized the wrongdoing, he actively cooperated and prompted his family to repay the entire amount.

Request under Article 29 and health condition

The lawyers requested exemption from criminal liability for Thung under point b, paragraph 2 of Article 29 of the Penal Code. The defense said Thung is now 80 years old and suffers from multiple serious illnesses, including stage III heart failure, citing the Ministry of Health. It stated that, given his current health, he is considered no longer able to pose a danger to society.

In addition, the defense said Thung’s family voluntarily repaid more than 16.4 billion dong, including all bribe money and an additional 5 billion dong to remedy the case.