Diep’s lawyers asks for the trial to be suspended due to the defendant’s poor health conditions (Photo: VNA) As the hearing started with the announcement of defendantDuong Thi Bach Diep’s statement, Diep kept on screaming at the court, causingdisorder. The jury had to postpone the court for one hour. However, after thebreak, Diep continued to cause chaos.
Diep’s lawyers asked for the trial to be suspended due tothe defendant’s poor health conditions.
After listening to doctors’ opinions, the jury decided tosuspend the court for five days and asked authorities to send Diep to thehospital for health check-up.
Diep, Director of the Diep Bach Duong Real Estate Co., is amongthe key defendants in the trial, and is charged with “fraud, appropriation of assets”.
Nine other defendants in the case are charged with “lack ofresponsibility, causing serious consequences,” including former Vice Chairmanof the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Tai; former Deputy Director ofthe municipal Department of Finance Tran Nam Trang; former Director ofthe HCM CityLight Music Centre Vy Nhat Tao; former Director of themunicipal Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Thanh Rum; formerDeputy Director of the department Le Ton Thanh; former deputy heads ofthe municipal People’s Committee Office Huynh Kim Phat and Le VanThanh; former Director of the municipal Department of Natural Resources andEnvironment Dao Anh Kiet; and former Deputy Director of the department NguyenThanh Nhan.
According to the indictment, the 185 Hai Ba Trung land lot, owned by the State,was the headquarters of the Light Music Centre under the municipal Departmentof Culture, Sports and Tourism. In 2007, the centre’s then director Vy Nhat Taocontacted Diep to cooperate in upgrading the headquarters.
Diep then proposed exchanging her land lot at 57 Cao Thang street for the 185Hai Ba Trung land lot, as she owned the land lot at 179 Hai Ba Trung street andwanted to build a five-star hotel complex there.
The property swap was approved by Nguyen Thanh Tai. During the process, Diepused the land use right certificate for 57 Cao Thang as collateral to borrowmoney from Agribank - HCM City branch.
After being granted a land right use certificate for the property at 185 Hai BaTrung, however, Diep did not use it to replace the collateral at Agribank tohand over the property at 57 Cao Thang to the Light Music Centre as committed.Instead, Diep used the 185 Hai Ba Trung land lot as collateral for aloan at Southern Bank (now Sacombank) and so far was not able to repay thedebt.
The indictment stated that Tai permitted the property swap while he was notresponsible for handling and reorganising State assets.
On March 5, 2010, Tai signed a document sent to relevant units approving theexchange of the two land lots, without any request to check and clarify thelegal status of the 57 Cao Thang land lot, causing losses of State assets.
The other defendants showed a lack of responsibility in carrying out theirduty, thus facilitating Diep’s fraud and appropriation of assets.
The court will be resumed on March 22./.
VNA
