Vietnam says ex-top police official organized gambling ring

HANOI, Vietnam

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnamese police have arrested a senior police official suspected of involvement in an international gambling ring as the ruling Communist Party pushes its crackdown on graft.

The Ministry of Public Security said on its website that the arrest order had been issued Sunday for Nguyen Thanh Hoa, former head of a police department specialized in fighting hi-tech crimes, for allegedly organizing gambling as part of the online gambling and money laundering case.

The president had stripped Hoa of the “people’s police” title earlier Sunday, the ministry said.

State media said 38 people have been arrested for their roles in the multimillion-dollar gambling case so far in which police have seized property and other assets worth of $44 million.