Tran Van Bang received a summons dated February 25, 2022 by the Ho Chi Minh city public security, requesting him to be at the Investigating Agency Office (in District 1) on March 1. It is reported that he did not comply with the summons.
On March 1, state media reported that Ho Chi Minh city public security arrested Tran Van Bang at his house. He is accused of “storing, making, and posting online materials that propagandize, distort, and defame the Socialist Republic of Vietnam” under article 117 of the 2015 Criminal Code.
According to state media, Bang’s Facebook posts had “intended to defy the government and negatively affect social security and order.” The authorities also declared that they searched his house and found “a number of books and materials containing anti-state information.”
Following Bang's arrest, one of his lawyers, Dang Dinh Manh, shared on his Facebook that Tran Van Bang signed a contract with the lawyers before his arrest. On March 5, lawyer Dang Dinh Manh confirmed that the registration to defend his client had been approved within 24 hours. It was unprecedented, as Vietnamese lawyers usually face difficulties in the registering procedures required by law enforcement.
On March 11, Tran Van Bang was transferred from the District 12 Detention Center to Chi Hoa prison without informing his family. The family only found out about the transfer on March 15 when they visited the detention center in District 12.
December 2022:
Facebooker Tran Van Bang, held in pretrial detention since his arrest in March 2022, told his family that his health had taken a turn for the worse with several symptoms such as yellow fluid in both ears, fluid in both eyes, and a growing lump in one part of his body. Bang said he needed medical attention. He also asked for help drafting a will. His lawyers, Nguyen Van Mieng and Dang Dinh Manh, requested that Bang be immediately taken to a hospital for treatment.
Bang was also allegedly facing extended investigation, according to his lawyer Dang Dinh Manh.