HCM City court upholds sentences in AgriBank case

Defendants before the court in HCM City. (Source: VNA)

HCM City (VNA) – The People’s Court of Ho Chi Minh City on May 12 upheld a life sentence for Duong Thanh Cuong for swindling to appropriate property at the Vietnam Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (AgriBank)’s branch in Binh Chanh (AgriBank Binh Chanh).

The court also upheld the compensation level of 33 billion VND that Cuong, ex-Director of the Binh Phat company, has to pay for the AgriBank Binh Chanh.

Duong Thanh Cuong and other ex-Agribank Binh Chanh officials filed appeals after the first court held on November 5, 2015.

The court also kept imprisonment punishments imposed on other defendants, including Nguye n Van Loi, former Deputy Director of AgriBank Binh Chanh 8 years, Hoang Nhu Bich 7 years, Nguyen Thi Thanh Nga 8 years, Tran Thi Hoang Yen 7 years, for breaching regulations on lending in credit organisations’ activity.

According to indictment, Cuong used the Tan Dai Phat and Thanh Phat companies as legal entities to forge fake documents to appropriate 15 billion VND (660,000 USD) loaned from AgriBank Binh Chanh.

The Thanh Phat Company still owes 33 billion VND (1.45 million USD) to Agribank Binh Chanh when the defendants were prosecuted.

Earlier, Cuong also received a life sentence in other case at the AgriBank’s branch 6 in a court held on May 11.-VNA