Vietnamese real estate tycoon sentenced to death over multibillion-dollar fraud

It took six tonnes of evidence, 85 defendants, and an extraordinary trial to convict Truong My Lan of one of the biggest bank frauds the world has ever seen.

Vietnamese property tycoon Truong My Lan was sentenced to death on April 11, 2024, following an extraordinary trial in Ho Chi Minh City. Picture: AFP

A property tycoon has been sentenced to death, convicted of stealing US$27 billion (A$41 billion in one of the most extraordinary cases of bank fraud the world has ever seen.

Truong My Lan embezzled the dizzying amount from one of the country’s largest banks in a racket lasting 11 years, stealing a sum equivalent to six per cent of Vietnam’s 2023 GDP.

The trial lasted five weeks, but its scale was extraordinary: 2700 people were summoned to testify, about 200 lawyers were involved, and six tonnes of evidence was tendered.

The rare verdict stunned onlookers — it’s an unusually severe punishment.

Ms Lan is one of very few women in history ever to be sentenced to death over white-collar crime, but some suggest the court handed it down to incentivise her to repay some of the billions she secreted away from Saigon Commercial Bank.

“The defendant’s actions... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the (Communist) Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in southern business hub Ho Chi Minh City.

The verdict comes as part of a sweeping crackdown on corruption across the country.

An additional 85 people face verdicts and sentencing on a range of charges, including bribery, abuse of power, appropriation, and violations of Vietnamese banking law.

In a statement reported by state media, Ms Lan showed remorse for her actions.

“I am so angry that I was stupid enough to get involved in this very fierce business environment — the banking sector — of which I have little knowledge,” she said.

Prosecutors say the damage could total USD $27 billion (AUD $41 billion). Picture: AFP

Ms Lan, who is married to a wealthy Hong Kong businessman also on trial, was accused of setting up fake loan applications to withdraw money from Saigon Commerical Bank.

She owned a 90 per cent stake in the institution.

Police have so far identified about 42,000 victims affected by the scandal.

Many are Saigon Commercial Bank bondholders who cannot withdraw their money and have not received interest or principal payments since Lan’s arrest.

Authorities have also said a US$5.2 million (A$7.8 million) bribe Ms Lan and some bankers paid to state officials to cover violations was the largest ever recorded in Vietnam.

Ms Lan’s arrest in October 2022 sparked widespread protests in Ho Chi Minh City as well as Vietnam’s capital, Hanoi, another rare occurrence in the one-party communist state.

More than 4400 people have been indicted during the corruption crackdown since 2021.

A top Vietnamese luxury property tycoon — Do Anh Dung, head of the Tan Hoang Minh group — was sentenced to eight years in prison last month after he was found guilty of cheating thousands of investors in a US$355 million (A$544 million) bond scam

With AFP.

Originally published as Vietnamese real estate tycoon sentenced to death over multibillion-dollar fraud