Vietnam arrests deputy minister over probe into huge bribes

Vietnamese police arrested a deputy health minister on Wednesday for allegedly accepting huge bribes, part of an investigation into a company accused of smuggling medical equipment, authorities said.

Vietnam has pursued a high-profile anti-corruption campaign in recent years that has netted dozens of business leaders and senior government figures.

Deputy Health Minister Tran Van Thuan, a leading oncologist in Vietnam, was taken into custody “due to his acceptance of bribes involving a large sum of money”, the public security ministry said in a statement, without specifying the amount.

Thuan, 56, was appointed deputy health minister in 2020 and chairman of the National Medical Council in 2024.

His arrest came as part of a police investigation involving “smuggling” and “violations of accounting regulations causing serious consequences” at Viet My Medical Investment Joint Stock Company, the ministry’s statement said.

Police have arrested two executives and an accountant at the firm, which was allegedly set up to trade, resell and inflate the prices of medical equipment and pharmaceuticals before importing them from Singapore and Hong Kong into Vietnam, state media said.