* Belgium refuses to extradite alleged Vietnamese tax dodger
Belgium’s Minister of Justice on Sept. 20 refused a request of a US District Court in the Northern District of the US State of Florida to extradite Vietnamese seafood exporter Buu Huy to the US, where he is wanted on charges of criminal tax evasion.
Huy, the deputy director of the An Giang Frozen Seafood Export Company, was also released from Belgian custody the same day, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).
In its announcement VASEP hailed the decision by Belgian Minister of Justice Laurette Onkelinx as “judicious”.
It said in an earlier letter to the Belgian justice minister that granting the US extradition request would set a dangerous precedent which could threaten the safety and security of businessmen traveling and working legally in foreign countries.
Buu Huy was arrested by Belgian police on May 10 while he was attending the European Aquacultural Exhibition in Brussels. He was accused of evading taxes by using false labels on seafood exported to the US market.
Huy, who was detained for 133 days at Forest Prison in Brussels, would return to Vietnam immediately after completing administrative procedures related to his release, according to VASEP.
The main defendant in the case was the import company which was ultimately responsible to US law and customers for the quality and labeling of exported products, VASEP general secretary Nguyen Huu Dung told Vietnam News Agency.-
* First criminal case against a foreign bank
Investigating agencies have for the first time instituted a criminal case against foreign-invested ABN-Amro Bank.
According to investigation documents, ABN-Amro Bank and Vietnam Industrial and Commercial Bank’s Hai Phong branch have made illegal inter-payment for nearly 600 foreign currency-trading contracts, of which the actual payment has been made for only 85 contracts.
With more than 500 illegal transactions, nearly USD 3.8 million and more than VND 12 billion had been appropriated from state funds. According to major general Pham Quy Ngo, head of the police investigation agency under the Ministry of Public Security, acts of several officers of the Bank constituted a crime of deliberately acting against state regulations on economic management, causing serious consequences.
So far, four officers of ABN-Amro Bank have been charged. The investigating bodies are continuing the investigation to verify and clarify the involvement of other persons in the case.-
* Judge’s bench book published
The Supreme People’s Court has published the judge’s bench book with assistance of international agencies and organizations, especially the Australian Government.
The bench book contains comments and guidance on theoretical and practical skills for the settlement of cases at courts, which will help judges acquire necessary information for settlement of specific cases and make proper decisions.
The bench book, which is published in the forms of prints with detachable pages, e-bench book saved on CD-ROM and Internet e-bench book, will also help the public get more information on the operation of courts, contributing to increasing the transparency of proceedings.-