On June 23 a dump truck suddenly crashed into the back of another truck on National Highway 1A in Thu Duc District, Ho Chi Minh City.
Its cab was badly damaged as was the back of the truck in front. The driver of the dump truck had a fractured right leg and a stomach injury.
Some local residents called the Thu Duc traffic police and two hours later officers Nguyen Trong Nghia and Pham Van Hai arrived in a police car.
Tuoi Tre saw Hai asking Nguyen Van Hong, the other driver, a few cursory questions but not taking any notes or statements.
The officers also failed to do the normal tasks at the scene of an accident -- such as measuring and drawing traces, checking the scene, and examining the vehicles.
Twenty minutes later Ly Van Tai, the owner of the dump truck, arrived. Tai and Hong exhorted the officers not to seize their vehicles, saying they could settle things on their own.
Hai told Tai to call the hospital about the driver, saying he could oblige them if his injury was minor.
Tai said the driver’s thigh was broken, yet Hai let Hong drive off.
He asked Tai for the dump truck’s papers but the latter was unable to produce them.
The officers threatened to seize the vehicle and got into their car. Tai stuck his head into the car to talk with them. Tuoi Tre does not know what happened, but five minutes later the police car left.
Clearly, something was amiss. A week later Tuoi Tre spoke to Captain Do Thanh Thang, deputy chief of the Thu Duc traffic police.
He confirmed that the police records did not show this accident. He called Nguyen Trong Nghia ….
It is anyone’s guess why they failed to record the accident though a person was badly injured.
‘Two bottles’ law
Later the same day a trailer truck wrongly overtook a car on Phan Dang Luu Street in the city’s Binh Thanh District and hit it. The car’s front portion was totaled. The police seized both vehicles.
The next day two officers from the Binh Thanh traffic police, Huynh Minh Duc and Lieu Hong Loc, arrived at the accident scene.
Traffic policeman Huynh Minh Duc (L) asks a truck owner to a restaurant to receive bribe and ‘close’ accident’s file by returning vehicle’s documents and overlooking the impoundment of driving certificate (Photo: Tuoi Tre)
Loc claimed to be a “very strict” officer.
The car owner demanded a compensation of VND15 million (US$714) first and then VND12 million, but Tuan, the truck owner, refused.
Loc said since the truck was at fault, if Tuan agreed to pay the compensation, the vehicles could be released.
Tuoi Tre accompanied the truck owner to the traffic police station the next day where Loc threatened to keep the vehicle and fine driver Vo Van Thang VND1.2 million for wrongful overtaking and withhold his driving license for 30 days.
Thang demurred, saying the fine was too harsh. Loc said it should actually have been VND2 million and three months, and put off the case until the next day.
The next morning Tuan, the owner, and his friend Hoang went back to the police station but Loc did not seem to be on duty.
Hoang called Duc who agreed to meet Tuan and Hoang in a café. Tuoi Tre accompanied them but did not join them at their table, instead sitting at another table close by.
Duc again threatened to withhold the license but Hoang pleaded with him not to do so and to return the vehicle immediately.
Tuoi Tre was recording their conversation.
Duc said he would “consider” a more minor charge so that the penalty could be lessened.
When they asked him how much bribe they had to pay, Duc said “three bottles.”
A “bottle” was slang for VND1 million.
“One bottle for the boss, one for me, and one for Loc.”
After taking the money from Tuan, Duc said: “Consider it as a loss in a football match.”
A little later he came to a restaurant, bringing along with him the papers for releasing the vehicle back to Tuan.
They began drinking and Duc explained to Tuan the law of the road: A driver or owner of a vehicle involved in an accident must pay the police VND2 million for getting back their vehicle and goods.
Tuan said he would have lost less time if Duc had let him know this earlier. Duc retorted that Tuan should have “spoken up” first, meaning he should have offered a bribe right away.
Though the owner of the car was not at fault, he too had to pay two “bottles,” he claimed.
Tuan asked Duc if it was possible to settle minor accidents unofficially, Duc said: “Yes. Like this case. If you had known how to ‘speak up,’ we could have closed the files.”
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