Five coast guard generals arrested over asset embezzlement

The Defense Ministry’s criminal investigation agency on Monday arrested five coast guard generals and two lieutenant colonels on accusations they embezzled assets.

The five generals include Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Son, former Commander of the Coast Guard; Lieutenant General Hoang Van Dong, former Political Commissar; Major General Doan Bao Quyet, former Deputy Political Commissar; Major General Pham Kim Hau, former Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff; and Major General Bui Trung Dung, former Deputy Commander.

The two lower-level officers detained are Colonel Nguyen Van Hung, Technical Director cum Deputy Commander, and Senior Colonel Bui Van Hoe, Deputy Head of Finance Division under the Vietnam Coast Guard Command.

They were investigated for “property embezzlement” under Clause 4, Article 353 of the Penal Code. The decisions were approved by the Central Military Procuracy.

Previously, the Secretariat of the Party Central Committee had warned the Standing Board of the Coast Guard Party Committee for the 2015-2020 term and removed lieutenant generals Son and Dong, and major generals Quyet and Dung from all positions in the Party.

The above disciplinary decision was made after the Secretariat determined that the standing board had committed “very serious violations”. Many cadres and Party members, including the Party Committee’s Secretary and Deputy Secretary, Commander, Deputy Commander, as well as leaders and commanders of member units “have seen their political, moral, and lifestyle qualities degraded, causing especially serious consequences”.

The Vietnam Coast Guard Party Committee for the 2015-2020 term “lacked responsibility, showed their loose leadership and direction, lacked inspection and supervision”, so that the High Command and its member units had many serious violations of regulations of the Party, laws of the State and regulations of the Ministry of National Defense in the management and use of finance; implementation of capital construction investment projects; procurement of technical equipment, materials and goods; and fight against smuggling, causing very serious consequences.