A former politician unintentionally killed a teenager in a traffic accident in central Hanoi last year but was exempted from criminal prosecution, a police officer told state television.
The interview was broadcast on Monday evening, days after people began leaving flowers at the site where the accident occurred in May 2025, in what dissident and youth groups described as an act of protest.
The driver, Nguyen Sy Cuong, is a former deputy chairman of the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs Committee and the husband of a minister in the current government.
The TV interview was the first official acknowledgement of his involvement in the accident after allegations linking him to the case had circulated on social media for months.
Citing the findings of the police investigation that was supported by prosecutors, the report on broadcaster VTV said Cuong struck a motorbike with his car while driving in the wrong lane.
He tested negative for alcohol consumption and admitted responsibility for the accident.
The investigating agency determined that Cuong violated road-traffic regulations, according to Colonel Nguyen Duc Long, the deputy chief of the Hanoi police, on state television in an interview.
He said Cuong was exempted from criminal liability because of mitigating factors.
The family of the victim, whose identity was not disclosed in the report, also withdrew its complaint, Long said.
“I would like to express our sincere gratitude for the online community’s concern regarding this incident and our family,” said Do Viet Hung, the father of the victim, in the television report.
His face was not shown.
“However, the matter is now in the past, and all issues have been clearly resolved by the investigative authorities,” he said. — Reuters
