Le Duc Tho, who was sacked as the Party Secretary of the Mekong Delta's Ben Tre Province, has been arrested on charges he allegedly abused his "power and position to influence others for gains". - Photo from Vietnam News/ANN
HANOI: Former Vietnamese government official Le Duc Tho has been detained on charges he allegedly abused his "power and position to influence others for gains,” according to the country’s Public Security Ministry.
The arrest of Tho, an ex-party chief of Mekong Delta province Ben Tre, was linked to a case of alleged bribery and state asset mismanagement at the Xuyen Viet Oil Travel and Transport Trading Co. and some other entities, the ministry said in a statement on its website. It didn’t provide any further details.
A representative for Tho didn’t answer phone calls seeking comment.
The detainment is the latest in a growing number of crackdowns on government officials and business executives by the nation’s Communist Party. Tho, 53, was fired from his party positions in October for failing to properly declare the origins of his assets, the government said this week.
Xuyen Viet Oil, among the nation’s 40 key petroleum traders, had its license for exporting and importing petroleum scrapped in August by the trade ministry over fuel distribution violations, a public ministry publication reported.
Its director and her deputy were detained one month later for allegedly breaking rules on management and use of public assets, according to state media.
Tho was chief administrator of Vietnam’s central bank and general director and chairman of state-run VietinBank before becoming the Ben Tre Provincial Party secretary in July 2021, a position he held until September this year, according to state media.
-- With assistance from Nguyen Dieu Tu Uyen. - ©2023 Bloomberg L.P.
