Thanh Nien has also exposed a male prostitution ring being run by African men.
Dealing with crimes committed by foreigners in Ho Chi Minh City has become very complicated, according to city Police Department Deputy Chief Colonel Phan Anh Minh.
The city police force’s Immigration Department said from November 1 to November 15, it uncovered 109 offenses committed by foreigners, including having no identity documents, having expired visas and disturbing public order.
Africans committed 95 percent of the infringements, the department said. The African offenders included 99 Nigerians, one South African and one Ghanaian.
During the course of investigations, the language barrier created a major hurdle, with the investigation agencies having a shortage of interpreters, Colonel Minh said.
In many cases, foreign suspects pretend they can’t speak English, making things even more difficult for investigators, Minh said.
On November 12, the police detained two Nigerian men accused of injuring another Nigerian near Phu Nhuan District’s Ward 9 police station.
Upon being taken into police custody, the two Nigerians pretended they couldn’t speak English although investigators later confirmed they were fluent English-speakers.
It took investigators and the interpreter hours to record their statements, the Phu Nhuan District police told Thanh Nien.
Investigations are still underway with one Nigerian released on bail and the other detained at the Social Assistance Center, the police said.
Last month, Thanh Nien sent T.N. undercover to investigate rumors of male prostitution rings run by Africans.
T.N. met Kargbo Michel Tony, who promised to make T.N. “happy” in exchange for retrieving his passport from a hotel in Tan Binh District. The hotel was holding Kargbo’s passport because he hadn’t paid his bill.
Kargbo also told T.N. he could procure gigolos for her for US$100 each.
Other hurdles
HCMC police officials said unclear regulations also hampered the handling of African suspects.
Vietnam has no detention centers for foreign suspects and deporting African citizens is often difficult because many of them do not have any personal identity documents, one high-ranking city police officer said.
When Vietnamese authorities contact the diplomat missions of African countries, they find the overseas missions are also hamstrung by the lack of identity documents.
The HCMC Immigration Department estimates there are 400 Africans in the city that have overstayed the 15-day visas African citizens are granted.
However, it would cost the city hundreds of thousands of dollars to deport these visa over-stayers, the department said.
According to regulations, the fine for overstaying a visa is VND500,000-VND2 million (US$30- 120) but many African suspects in HCMC are homeless with no money or personal identity papers.
Suspects can only be detained in police custody for a maximum of 24 hours.
Police also slammed landlords who don’t file proper household registration reports after leasing a property to foreigners.
“Many landlords turn a blind eye to foreign clients who do not have personal documents,” an Immigration Department official said. “Though the police have fined them many times, it doesn’t seem to be much of a deterrent.”
Tighten visa scrutiny, HCMC police urge
In a recent note sent to Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, the HCMC government proposed stricter visa regulations for foreigners, particularly African citizens.
The city asked the ministries of defense, public security, and foreign affairs to take greater care when issuing visas to people with “dubious” reasons for visiting Vietnam and those who have no invitation from any Vietnamese agency.
The city also suggested those who wanted to enter Vietnam must hold round-trip tickets.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was asked to work with African embassies and consulates to develop a better system of handling criminal and immigration cases involving their citizens.
The HCMC administration also called on the Ministry of Public Security to build detention centers for foreign suspects at the center of criminal investigations.
Reported by Dam Huy |
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