Tat Thanh Cang, a former deputy secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, was defended by Lawyer Le Nguyen Hoa and Lawyer Tran Van Su.

Lawyer Le Nguyen Hoa and Lawyer Tran Van Su offered the following three points of view in support of Mr. Tat Thanh Cang's defense:

1. Defendant Tat Thanh Cang is not the subject of the crime of "Violating regulations on management and use of State assets, causing loss and waste" as outlined in Article 219 of the Criminal Code 2015. Reportedly, Tat Thanh Cang is not the person assigned to manage and use the assets of the City Party Committee, nor the representative of the property owner of the City Party Committee at Tan Thuan company. Instead, the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee's Office is the organization tasked with overseeing and using the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee's property at Tan Thuan Company.

2. In accordance with Decision No.1087 of the Standing Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, Defendant Tat Thanh Cang did not violate Clause 3, Article 6 of the regulation.

3. The lawyers also suggested the Trial Panel and the Procuracy to note other mitigating circumstances for Tat Thanh Cang as prescribed at Points a and t, Clause 1, Article 51 of the Criminal Code 2015. The lawyers concurred with the Procuracy's recommendation to refund Tan Thuan Company the sum of 16 billion at the same time.

However, Lawyer Le Nguyen Hoa also added: "The parties must repay to each other what they received because the transfer contract between Tan Thuan Company and Quoc Cuong Gia Lai Company was not in compliance with the law" (Based on Article 131 of the Civil Code 2015).

Particularly, the interest rate of 21 billion VND is the agreement of the members at Tan Thuan Company, not the direction of the City Party Committee as well as the defendant Tat Thanh Cang. So if you consider it, it is necessary to refund 21 billion that Tan Thuan Company paid to Quoc Cuong Gia Lai, not just 16 billion as the representative of the Procuracy argued.

Therefore, the lawyers proposed the Trial Panel to declare Defendant Tat Thanh Cang not guilty of "Violating regulations on the management and use of State assets, causing loss and waste".

Here are some photos from today's court session: