Mailisa and her husband in the trillion-dollar smuggling case, how many years in prison must they face?

The famous beauty salon chain of Ms. Phan Thi Mai and Mr. Hoang Kim Khanh is facing the highest sentence after being accused of smuggling and changing the origin of cosmetics from Guangzhou to "high-end" Hong Kong products, illegally earning thousands of billions of dong.

The case involving the Mailisa Beauty Salon system and MK Skincare Facility has shaken the entire Vietnamese beauty market. On November 21, the Department of Police Investigation of Crimes on Corruption, Economy, and Smuggling (C03) - Ministry of Public Security, officially issued a decision to prosecute the "Smuggling" case and temporarily detained 8 subjects, in which the focus is Ms. Phan Thi Mai (Director of Mailisa Beauty Salon) and Mr. Hoang Kim Khanh (General Director of MK Skincare Facility). The participation of 6 other individuals, from Chief Accountant to Import-Export staff and subjects specializing in illegal money transfers, shows that this is a well-organized, tightly-knit network to carry out sophisticated smuggling and tax evasion.

Deceptive Formula: Guangzhou Cosmetics 'Transform' Into High-End Products

Initial investigation results revealed the shocking "formula" for the Mailisa system to get rich: importing cheap cosmetics from Guangzhou, then changing the origin to "Hong Kong" to sell at many times higher prices. Mr. Hoang Kim Khanh admitted that he did this because "Vietnamese people do not like Chinese goods" and used fake contracts to legalize the goods to Vietnam.

With illegal profits reaching thousands of billions of dong from just 3/100 key products, the case has reached a huge scale, shaking the market.

Horrifying Consequences: Trading Profits for Customers' Trust and Health

Apart from the economic and market management damage, the most alarming thing about the Mailisa case is the consequences for the health and trust of millions of consumers. Changing the origin of goods from Guangzhou to "high-end" goods is not only an act of deceiving the value but also poses a great risk to the quality of the products.

Cheap cosmetics, not strictly controlled or not licensed for free circulation (according to Mr. Khanh's testimony), when used for a long time, can cause serious problems for the skin and health of consumers. Thousands of billions of illegal profits have been built on the absolute trust of customers in a big brand. This case raises big questions about the responsibility of beauty salons in ensuring the absolute safety and transparency of the products they provide.

In-depth Analysis of Penal Framework: Life Imprisonment and Asset Seizure

The act of smuggling and changing the origin of goods to gain illegal profits by Mailisa and her husband has put them in an extremely serious legal situation, facing the highest penalty frame under Vietnamese law. This is a long and arduous legal battle.

The Highest Level of the Crime of Smuggling (Article 188)

Legal experts all agree that, with the amount of illegal profits reaching thousands of billions of VND – determined to be an exceptionally large amount – the case has gone far beyond the normal level and forced the application of Clause 4, Article 188 of the 2015 Penal Code. This provision stipulates the most severe punishment for smuggling. This means that, based on the severity and scale of illegal profits, the maximum sentence that Mailisa and his wife must receive is life imprisonment. The actual sentence will depend on the trial process, but this is the highest legal limit that awaits them.

Aggravating Circumstances and Organizational Factors

The sentence will be decided based on the Court's assessment of the aggravating circumstances. In this case, the aggravating factors are clear:

• Organized crime: The participation of 8 defendants in many positions (from leaders, accountants, to illegal money transfer subjects) shows that this is a professional crime ring, with close collusion and clear division of tasks.

• Repeated crime: Smuggling and changing of origin takes place over a long period of time, is not a single incident, leading to particularly serious economic and social consequences.

Measures to Seize Assets and Completely Recover

In addition to prison sentences, offenders also face extremely severe additional penalties. Clause 4 of Article 188 stipulates that offenders may be fined and, most importantly, have part or all of their property confiscated.

The decisive action of C03 in promptly seizing and freezing the assets of Mailisa and her husband right from the investigation stage is an important highlight, demonstrating the seriousness and determination of the State in the fight against economic crimes. The frozen assets include a magnificent mansion and a fleet of supercars worth hundreds of billions of VND - symbols of a luxurious life built with illegal profits. Legally, this ensures that the assets obtained from the crime will not be dispersed, creating the most favorable conditions to completely recover the thousands of billions of VND that have caused damage. The confiscation of all assets is a mandatory additional penalty for the particularly serious crime of smuggling, thereby reinforcing the principle that criminals cannot benefit from their wrongdoings. This measure is not only a procedural measure but also sends a strong deterrent message to the business community, warning that illegal profits will be completely recovered, reinforcing the seriousness of the law.

Mailisa Beauty Salon was suddenly inspected by the police, customers were confused An chi15:33:46 13/11/2025On November 13, police forces simultaneously appeared at Mailisa beauty salons in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Dak Lak and Nghe An, attracting the attention of customers and people.