Ha Ngoc Chien, director of the Health Department in the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu, fraudulently inflated bills for equipment purchased for fighting influenza and pocketed the difference.

The police have evidence of her invoice fraud and embezzlement.

In February 2004 she signed a contract to buy 5,100 masks purportedly worth VND50,000 ($3) each. But the police have since discovered they cost just VND15,872.

The same month Chien purchased 1,000 carbon-activated masks for VND40,000 each. She inflated the cost 10 times since these masks cost just VND4,000.

In another instance, she bought 6,000 safety suits for VND408 million ($25,600). But the police said she had spent only VND185 million ($11,600), pocketing the remaining $14,000.

They confirmed she had signed documents to buy other stuff like chemical sprays, automatic pumps, health record books, and others at two to 3.5 times higher than market prices.

The police are investigating to find out if someone else was involved in her scams.

Source: Nguoi Lao Dong – Translated by Minh Phat