Vietnamese police officer risked death to arrest bus driver

The driver of a bus in northern Vietnam has been arrested after he drove more than a kilometre in Hanoi on Monday with a police officer, who tried to pull him up for breaking road rules, clinging precariously to the bus' windshield wipers. Lieutenant Nguyen Manh Phan of the Ba Vi District traffic police division ordered Phung Hong Phuong, 37, who was driving a 39-seat bus, to pull over.



Phuong then refused to produce his papers, rushed back to the bus, and tried to drive away. In an effort to stop him, Phan jumped on to the bus, and clutched the wipers. But this did not cause Phuong to stop and he continued to drive.

Phuong drove for more than a kilometre before he stopped, realizing that other officers and many bystanders were chasing after him. He later told the police that he fled because he was afraid of being fined for encroaching on the wrong side of the road.


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He confessed he was once convicted of fatally running over a person in the southern province of Dong Nai, and served a four-year jail term until 2010. A Ba Vi District official was quoted as saying that people were incensed and tried to beat Phuong up, but were stopped by the officers. Phan, despite his close shave with death, reportedly followed proper procedures. Phuong could be charged with “acting against public officials.”