Police investigate the switching of 1,493 imported pigs

Importation of pig through Lao Bao International Border Gate, Quang Tri province. Photo provided by Lao Bao Customs Branch.

Customs authority stands firm

On January 18 and January 20, 2021, Tan Trieu T&P One Member Company Limited (address: Nam Xuan Duc village, Tan Thanh commune, Huong Hoa District, Quang Tri province) carried out procedures for importing two shipments of live pigs for slaughter from Thailand through Lao Bao border gate. The total number of pigs was 2,000.

Based on the dossiers presented by the enterprise, Lao Bao Customs Branch approved to allow the company to take 2,000 pigs to Hamlet No.9, Hai Son commune, Hai Hau District, Nam Dinh province, for preservation while waiting for clearance as prescribed.

However, the company only carried out quarantine and was granted veterinary certificates for 507 pigs, the remaining 1,493 pigs were taken back to the farm at Nam Xuan Duc village, Tan Thanh commune, Huong Hoa District, Quang Tri province (the location that is not recognized as a place of animal isolation for quarantine by Animal Department).

The day after, the Animal Department issued a decision on sanctioning administrative violation for the above company due to not taking the imported animals to a place of animal isolation that was approved in the quarantine dossier.

At the same time, the Animal Department also issued a document to answer the company with the content: Animal Department and affiliated units did not have enough legal grounds for granting veterinary certificates for 1,493 pigs at Nam Xuan Duc village, Tan Thanh commune, Huong Hoa District, Quang Tri province.

However, 30 days since the date approving for taking goods for preservation, Lao Bao Customs Branch issued a decision on sanctioning administrative violations for the above company due to committing two acts: keeping goods at an incorrect place or at the location registered with the customs authority (point d, Clause 2, Article 12 of Decree 128/2020/ND-CP); import of goods subject to specialized inspection without results of specialized inspection (point đ, Clause 1, Article 18 of Decree 128/2020/ND-CP); apply remedial measures of forcing to re-export violated material evidence.

However, the enterprise has served the main penalty but has not taken remedial measures.

Right after that, the Lao Bao Customs Branch issued a decision on coercion to take remedial measures, but the enterprise still did not comply. Thus the unit initiated a lawsuit for the above decisions to the People's Court of Huong Hoa district.

The People's Court of Huong Hoa district has accepted the case, conducted an on-site appraisal, and issued a decision to apply temporary emergency measures to allow the business to sell the above 1,493 pigs.

After three times of dialogue, two court sessions were postponed, on April 19, 2022, the People's Court of Huong Hoa district brought the administrative case to trial.

As a result, the People's Court of Huong Hoa district issued the following sentence: Cancellation of part of the decision on sanctioning of administrative violations (cancellation of act No. 1; cancellation of remedial measures of act No. 2); cancel the coercive decision.

At the trial, Lao Bao Customs Branch still stands firm on its point that the decisions on sanctioning administrative violations and coercion complied with regulations.

Currently, Lao Bao Customs Branch has not received the judgment from the People's Court of Huong Hoa district. The Branch is reviewing the dossiers to continue handling the case in accordance with regulations.

Signs of switching

Through the process of collecting and verifying information about the case dossier, Lao Bao Customs Branch has determined that the enterprise showed signs of taking 1,493 pigs to the northern provinces and not deliver to the farm in Nam Xuan Duc village, Tan Thanh commune, Huong Hoa district as declared and showed signs of switching imported goods.

Specifically, the analysis results of data and images showed that, among nine vehicles that the above enterprise declared to transport pigs from Lao Bao border gate to the farm in Nam Xuan Duc village, there were eight trucks. Those trucks were determined to pass through Quan Hau BOT Station (Quang Binh) on the nights of January 18, 2021 and January 20, 2021 after opening the declaration and leaving the Lao Bao border gate area.

All vehicles passing through the station also clearly showed the image of plastic seals, the yellow color matches the documents collected in the case dossiers as well as the information provided by the Lao Bao Animal Quarantine Station

Based on the collected documents and evidence, the Lao Bao Customs Branch has a basis to believe that the enterprise directly transported the goods which were in the two import declarations to the northern provinces, not to the farm (located in Nam Xuan Duc village, Tan Thanh commune, Huong Hoa district, Quang Tri province) as declared and there were signs of switching to legalize the number of imported pigs that have not been brought to the correct places of isolation and quarantine as registered to conceal violations so as not to be handled as per regulations.

Talking to reporters, the leader of Lao Bao Customs Branch said that the unit had handed over the dossier as requested by the investigation security agency and Quang Tri Provincial Police for continuing to investigate the signs of violation.