VietNamNet Bridge – Hanoi police on Monday announced the launch of an investigation into an alleged parking racket that might involve tens of billions dong at the city’s biggest wholesale market of Long Bien.

A seafood store at Long Bien wholesale market. An exposé by VTV last month revealed hundreds of merchants were forced to pay market porters fees to unload their cargo. VNA/VNS Photo Van Canh

The investigation will look into suspected asset appropriation, police said.

On Sunday, Ba Dinh District People’s Committee said Nguyen Van Loan, a deputy manager of Long Bien Market, was temporarily suspended from work for 15 days to “explain relevant information regarding the parking racket network” at the market.

Loan was directly in charge of two market cargo unloading teams of 36 porters, which were also suspended. 

Such moves came following an exposé by VTV late September reporting an illegal parking fee that hundreds of merchants were forced to pay market porters to be able to unload their cargo.

According to the TV station, each merchant had to pay at least VND200,000 (US$9) a vehicle a day and up to VND350,000 for a big truck. 

As the biggest wholesale market of agricultural products in Hanoi, Long Bien hosts roughly more than 1,000 merchants, of which more than 300 regularly need parking space to unload cargo. A merchant told VTV that she paid VND100 million last year to secure a parking space.

That meant the illegal parking payments could easily amount to at least VND30 billion a year.

Such money, however, did not go to the Long Bien Market Management Committee which only collected entrance fees of between VND15,000 and VND60,000, according to VTV.

After the documentary was broadcast nationwide, the Market Management Committee suspended porter Le Thanh Hai who had appeared in the documentary as one of those who ran the racket, and his colleague Nguyen Manh Long.

Ha Noi People’s Committee chairman Nguyen Duc Chung also ordered an investigation into the case, asking the city police to report the results by September 30. 

Source: VNS