Smuggling ring mastermind Nguyen Gia Thieu, former director of HCMC-based Dong Nam Company, and his accomplice, Pham Anh Vu, ex director of Hanoi’s Thien Anh Company are about to face the courts over smuggling and tax evasion.

There are 15 other defendants, including 12 ex-customs and airport officials who are accused of taking hush money to ease the ring’s operations.

In 1999 to 2002, the ring led by Thieu smuggled 39,519 cell phones valued at some VND148 billion ($9.3 million) from Hong Kong to Vietnam.

The importers smuggled the contraband into Vietnam via the post and with special help from Vietnam Airlines pilots and flight attendants.

Also, Dong Nam Co. colluded with its Hong Kong partner to lower the list price of the phones by $75-375 in contracts to dodge paying import duties.

The company cheated on its corporate income tax by securing contracts with domestic agents to sell phones at lower-than-market prices.

With the scam, Dong Nam Co. evaded total taxation believed to be in the area of VND96.5 billion ($6 million), said investigators.

Former Miss Vietnam

The court will summon Vietnam’s former beauty queen Ha Kieu Anh in connection to the case.

Ms Anh - while working as director of Mr Thieu’s Tam Nguyen Company - signed many questionable customs documents involved in the case. Investigators later found that all of her signatures had been forged.

Final arguments in the case are to be heard November 30.

Reported by Minh Thuan - Translated by T.H.