Luu Binh Nhuong, deputy head of the People’s Aspirations Committee of the National Assembly (NA), is arrested by police on November 14, 2023. Photo provided by Thai Binh police
Luu Binh Nhuong, vice chairman of the National Assembly’s People’s Aspirations Committee, was arrested on Tuesday for alleged collusion with gangs to extort money from sand mining companies.
Police in the northern province of Thai Binh arrested him as he arrived at Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi and will investigate him for extortion.
They also raided his office and carried out a search lasting several hours.
The arrest followed an investigation into a man named Pham Minh Cuong, 37, for extorting protection money from companies mining sand in the mudflats of Thai Binh, bordering Hanoi.
Cuong told authorities he forced them to pay based on the amount of sand mined or sell it to him at a low price.
In this way, Cuong’s gang earned billions of dong between 2020 and 2022. (1 billion VND = US$41,150)
Nhuong, 60, holds a doctorate in economic law. He was appointed deputy head of the People’s Aspirations Committee in September 2018.
His connection to the Cuong racket has not been revealed.
