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Vietnam's
central bank on Monday rewarded police in the Mekong Delta Tien Giang Province
who stopped the smuggling of 92 kilograms of gold from Cambodia last month.
Nguyen Van
Giau, governor of the State Bank of Vietnam, gave Tien Giang and Chau Thanh
District police a certificate of merit and VND20 million (US$1,047) for their
efforts.
Police in
the district arrested six smugglers in the case, including two who had purchased
the gold from Cambodia.
On February
4, the police found 92 one-kilogram bars of undocumented gold being carried in a
car halfway between An Giang Province, which neighbors Cambodia and Ho Chi Minh
City.
The amount
was equal to 2,450 taels, worth US$3.3 million, according to gold prices at the
time of the arrests.
It destined
for sale to gold shops in District 5, HCMC, the smugglers said.
Further
investigation helped find another 10 kilograms of gold illegally trafficked by
the smuggling ring.
Giau said
the bust helped stabilize domestic gold prices and exchange rates.
Tien Giang
police and Chau Thanh District People's Committee had previously granted the
district police a reward of VND30 million.