A Vietnamese property tycoon could face life in prison for money laundering
HANOI: In a separate trial on money laundering accusations, a Vietnamese property mogul who was condemned to death for fraud totaling US$27 billion might get a life sentence on Thursday, October 17.
In one of the largest corruption cases in history, property developer Truong My Lan was found guilty in April of embezzling money from the Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB), which prosecutors said she controlled. She was also given the death penalty.
The bank’s financial loss to tens of thousands of investors shocked the communist country and led to an unusual outcry from the victims.
A convoy of police vehicles transported Lan and 33 other defendants, including her husband and niece, to court in Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday.
After a four-week trial, Lan wore a face mask and sat in front of the court with two police officers on each side of him, waiting for the decision.
Lan is accused of money laundering, fraudulent activities, and unlawful cross-border currency trafficking. The prosecution has requested a life sentence for Lan.
It has been determined that around 36,000 bond purchasers who purchased SCB-issued bonds were the victims of the scam.
Nguyen Thi Huong, an online noodle vendor, told AFP that she intended to pass away in 2022 after losing everything worth $20,000.
“When I learned that I had lost all the money I had deposited at SCB Bank, I felt like I was losing my mind,” Huong, 33, said.
She said that she started having sleep problems, that stress was bad for her health, and that she ran out of money to keep her kids in additional lessons, which caused them to lag behind their classmates.
“I sat by my father’s grave and wished he would take me with him in death,” Huong said.
According to prior reports from state media, between early 2018 and October 2022, Lan and her collaborators plundered around US$18 billion by seizing assets from SCB. In actuality, Lan had a 90% share in the bank.
According to state media, Lan, the chair of prominent real estate developer Van Thinh Phat, gave her accomplices instructions to take money out of the SCB system.
Subsequently, she concealed the money’s source and used it to pay debts amongst businesses or move the funds overseas for fictitious agreements.
As her newest trial got underway, dozens of victims staged rallies in downtown Hanoi, calling on the government to assist them in getting their money back.
State media said that Lan had expressed regret to the victims in court and declared herself to be “not a bad person.”.
After being found guilty in April of embezzling US$12.5 billion, she was handed the death sentence; she is now appealing the decision, but no date has been set for it.
The whole harm inflicted, according to the prosecution, was estimated to be worth US$27 billion, or over 6% of Vietnam’s GDP in 2023.
