According to Cambodianess, Cambodia’s Interior Ministry said it neither arrested nor handed over Nguyễn Đức Thuận and Hồ Phạm Hiệp Huy to Vietnamese police.
The Latest: Cambodia’s Interior Ministry stated that it neither arrested nor handed over Nguyễn Đức Thuận and Hồ Phạm Hiệp Huy to Vietnamese police.
- The narrative from Việt Nam’s Ministry of Public Security (MPS) stated that its police arrested the men on Sept. 18 in Việt Nam and charged them on terrorism allegations linked to Việt Tân—an overseas opposition political party.
Conflicting Narratives: According to the Cambodian ministry’s statement, immigration records show that two of the three men—Hiệp, an Australian citizen, and Thuận, a Norwegian citizen—entered Cambodia on Sept. 15, with no recorded departure.
- Cambodia strongly rejected claims that authorities had detained the men and handed them over to Vietnamese police.
Việt Nam’s MPS stated that border guards at the Mỹ Quý Tây border crossing in Tây Ninh province caught three men entering Việt Nam illegally from Cambodia at about 9:50 p.m. on Sept. 18.
- Authorities claimed all three identified themselves as Việt Tân members during questioning.
A Third Account: Việt Tân provides a third account, stating that Vietnamese police abducted two of its members, Hồ Trần Hiệp (also known as Hồ Phạm Hiệp Huy) and Nguyễn Đức Thuận, in Cambodia on the morning of Sept. 18 while they were traveling to the Kaoh Andaet area.
- The Vietnamese police arrested the three men and stated that all identified themselves as members of Việt Tân, but Việt Tân has not confirmed that the third man, Thái Công Trường Sơn, belongs to the party.
- Việt Tân maintains that neither man intended to enter Việt Nam.
Speaking to ABC News on Sept. 29, Việt Tân representative Phong Nguyễn rejected the allegations and described the ministry’s actions as an abduction and an act of transnational repression.
Current Updates: While Việt Tân reported that Trần Hiệp and Nguyễn Đức Thuận had not received consular access as of Oct. 5, the Daily Advertiser reported that Trần Hiệp was being held at the MPS’s B34 detention center in Hồ Chí Minh City.
- The information was cited from consular correspondence sent that day to his wife, Chloe Dang, which also stated he was in good health.
The Background: On Sept. 28, the MPS’s Investigation Agency announced a criminal investigation, charges, and pretrial detention for Nguyễn Đức Thuận (born in 1974), Hồ Phạm Hiệp Huy (born in 1975), and Thái Công Trường Sơn (born in 1980), whose nationality was unspecified.
- The charges concern terrorism and forging official seals and documents.
- Việt Tân has not confirmed that the third man, Thái Công Trường Sơn, belongs to the party, and the statement from the Cambodian government did not mention entry or exit records for him.
International Response: Both governments whose citizens were detained have spoken out.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated that his government had contacted Trần Hiệp’s family and was continuing to provide support.
- The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade stated that it was making urgent representations to Vietnamese authorities, ABC News reported on Sept. 29.
Norway’s Foreign Ministry told VG on Sept. 28 that it was in contact with Nguyễn Đức Thuận’s family and that its embassy in Hà Nội “will try to obtain more information about the case.”
About Việt Tân: Việt Tân’s website describes it as a political party founded in 1982 that advocates democracy in Việt Nam.
- Although widely described as based in America, the group does not list an organizational address on its website.
- The Ministry of Public Security designates Việt Tân as a terrorist organization, although its leaders regularly meet with the United Nations and political figures from America, Europe, and other countries.
- Vietnamese authorities have accused numerous organizations and activists of affiliation with Việt Tân without substantiating those claims.
Thành Phương wrote this news article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on October 8, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine translated it into English.
